Lee Cruse charged with trafficking abalone and threatening fisheries officer
An Eden man accused of threatening to “spear” a NSW Fisheries officer was allegedly caught with almost 2000 under-sized abalone.
The South Coast News
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An Eden man has been charged with trafficking in seafood after allegedly being caught with almost 2000 undersized abalone.
Lee Anthony Cruse, 43, has been charged with six counts of possessing prohibited-sized fish, two counts of trafficking an indictable species of fish and threatening a fisheries officer.
Cruse has been refused bail and did not appear in Eden Local Court on November 4.
He is yet to enter a plea.
Court documents reveal Cruse was first allegedly caught by NSW Department of Primary Industry Fisheries NSW officers with 614 undersized abalone at Hegartys Beach within the Ben Boyd National Park south of Eden on October 20 last year.
Cruse was then allegedly caught with 809 undersized abalone at Terrace Beach within the same national park on February 3 this year, before being allegedly caught the next day with 485 undersized abalone at nearby Lennards Island.
NSW Fisheries also allege Cruse threatened fisheries officer Matthew Proctor on March 15 at Worang Point in Eden, allegedly threatening at one point to “spear” him, according to court documents.
“Piss off you white c***, or I’ll hurt you,” Cruse is alleged to have said.
Magistrate Doug Dick adjourned the matter to Eden Local Court on December 9.