3 women charged with salmon poaching near Hampden
Wildlife officers say women threw rocks to drive fish into net placed across river
Three women have been charged with poaching salmon from a river near Hampden in Newfoundland's White Bay.
Wildlife officers from the province and officials with Fisheries and Oceans Canada had been watching the river after getting a number of complaints about illegal netting.
They made the arrests on Aug. 9 after watching women set a net under a bridge, across the full width of the river.
In a news release Monday, the department of Justice and Public Safety said the women were seen throwing rocks to drive salmon into the net.
Investigators seized a net, one salmon and two ski masks.
The women will appear in provincial court in Corner Brook Dec. 6 to face charges of possession of a net near inland waters, netting salmon in inland waters and possession of fish caught in violation of the Fisheries Act.
Wildlife officers believe they were part of a larger group of poachers, and the investigation is still going on.