BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) – Calvin P. Chenier, 22, of Churchpoint, and Calvin P. Simoneaux, 63, of Churchpoint, and Jimmy Fruge, 83, of Breaux Bridge were cited by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries after a recent investigation into commercial fishing violations.

The violations took place in St. Martin Parish and East Baton Rouge Parish, according to officials.

The investigation started on Tuesday, Jan. 31 after LDWF received information about “two men using dip nets to catch fish in the University Lakes in Baton Rouge,” according to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

That is where agents discovered that dip nets were used to capture a large amount of fish. LDWF said they “found Chenier in possession of 273 pounds of shad in his vessel and three bass, two bream and two crappie.”

As the investigation unfolded, agents found Simoneaux was in possession of a literal ton of shad and was transporting it for sale. Officials said Chenier and Simoneaux were not allowed to fish commercially as they did not have licenses to do so.

Simoneaux was on his way to Fisherman’s Cove in Henderson where agents “found that Fruge paid a discounted price for the 2,000 pounds of shad from Simoneaux,” according to LDWF.

In total, 2,273 shad were found by agents. The citations for each of the three men are provided below:

Chenier was cited for:

  • Taking or selling commercial fish without commercial fishing licenses
  • Taking commercial fish without commercial gear license
  • Illegal possession of game fish

Simoneaux was cited for:

  • Taking or selling commercial fish without commercial fishing licenses
  • Taking commercial fish without commercial gear license

Fruge was cited for:

  • Buying commercial fish from an unlicensed fisherman
  • Failing to maintain public records

All three Louisiana residents are facing fines and possible jail time.