Massachusetts Environmental Police have made another significant striped bass bust, this time on Cape Cod.
On the early morning of August 5th, 2026, Massachusetts Environmental Police Officers received a report from the United States Coast Guard of a fisherman in the area of Ryders Cove, Chatham, with suspected illegally-caught commercial striped bass on board.
After a marine fisheries inspection, officers determined the fisherman to be in violation of multiple regulations governing the possession and taking of commercial striped bass. Officers found the fisherman to be in possession of a total of 18 fish and violations of possession of commercial striped bass on a closed commercial day, six of those fish were under the legal-size limit of at least 35 inches in total length, and after investigating further, discovered the fisherman had landed a double commercial limit for a single day.
All 324 pounds of fish were seized and subsequently forfeited to the Commonwealth following a civil libel hearing resulting in $1,863. The violator was issued a Massachusetts Environmental Violation Notice with fines amounting to an additional $2,905.80.
The Massachusetts Environmental Police extended their gratitude to the United States Coast Guard for their partnership and assistance throughout this case. As a reminder, state officers are out in the field every day enforcing the laws of the Commonwealth that help protect the natural resources we all value. Furthermore, they encourage anyone that witnesses a natural resource violation to contact their 24-hour dispatch center at 1-800-632-8075.
