Cheating

[JoePa]

Two guys were caught cheating after they were declared winners of a Lake Erie Walleye tournament - at weightin they have the heaviest  fish but someone in the crowd yelled out that someone else had a larger fish and it didn't weight as much as the winner's fish - the coordinator cut open one of the fish and found lead weights in the fish - he then cut open a couple of other ones and they also have lead weights in them - the crowd almost killed the crooks - these guys have won quite of bit of money in the past and now people think they he been chewing for a long time - you can get more of the story on Fox News today - man who can you trust these days 

[dave524]

Yeah , I saw a video where they cut open the fish, these were not small 1 ounce sinkers but maybe 8 ounce balls of lead, really surprised that some one on the scales didn't clue in to this sooner, you would think that working on the scales the operator would have a pretty decent idea of what the fish is going to weigh

[aplumma]

And the jokes just keep coming.

Art

[glen]

It never ends.  
what a story.  
 

[Fisherman]

That should make their hometown newspaper.

[misfish]

It was disgusting to watch this video. This leads me to say I really like where the bass tournys are going to in the states. A scrutineer that is with the angler and weighs the fish right there and released. I think you will see a length instead of weight coming soon for pickeral tournys. .

 

To add, I was very surprised these guys were not getting their licks from the ugly mob. It could of gotten even worse. Good on the other anglers for just keeping as cool as they could , under the circumstances.

Edited October 2, 2022 by misfish

[JoePa]

It is one thing to cheat on your income taxes or in a card game or when playing golf -but to cheat in a fishing tournament is as low as you can get - the death penalty might be in order 

[OhioFisherman]

As I understand it these were the same guys that were leading the fall brawl tournament last year on Lake Erie and couldn't pass the lie detector test.

https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/local-news/fishermen-accused-of-adding-weights-to-fish-to-win-popular-lake-erie-fishing-tournament

[BillM]

How much money have those guys won in the past?  

[AKRISONER]

1 hour ago, BillM said:

How much money have those guys won in the past?  

apparently hundreds of thousands of dollars all time plus a boat....yeesh

[Terry]

They need to be charged ,found guilty and fined in the amount they won over the years including the cost of boats and sponsors gave them

then a ban from fishing for life

and whatever time in jail for fraud 

[glirw]

Another reason why I stick to recreational fishing... make anything competitive and it can bring out the worst in people. I hope they get stripped of all titles trophies and prizes won in fishing tournaments.  

[Rizzo]

wow those are some serious weights. Would it normally be a live release tourney...but they cut them open because they were suspicious? 

[glirw]

16 minutes ago, Rizzo said:

wow those are some serious weights. Would it normally be a live release tourney...but they cut them open because they were suspicious? 

Apparantly, another competitor commented that a significantly larger walleye that he caught came in much lighter than a smaller walleye submitted by the cheating duo. This was the beginning of the end as the ref started probing... can we go salmon fishing now please

[OhioFisherman]

1 hour ago, Rizzo said:

wow those are some serious weights. Would it normally be a live release tourney...but they cut them open because they were suspicious? 

I don't know of any live release walleye tournaments  on Lake Erie here Rizzo, although I don't follow them closely. The dudes finished first in the Fall Brawl here last year and one of them couldn't pass the required polygraph test and they were disqualified, no evidence at that time they were cheating, but passing the test is mandatory.

The guy running the tournament is a local area cop and noticed hard  spots on the fish. It is the fall feed season here  for the walleye and they are gorging, fish caught later in the brawl can  be 2-3 pounds heavier than a fish of the same length caught early.

Edited October 4, 2022 by OhioFisherman

[John]

Just curious. Why are bass tournaments live release yet walleye tournaments are not? Maybe I have lead a sheltered life..😊

[CrowMan]

I'm assuming because the mortality rate of Walleye in a livewell is much higher than that of Bass. Generally Walleyes are caught at greater depths so temperature shock is an issue. Walleyes also like to "nose" into the corners of the livewell making them susceptible to being beat up when traveling in rough water.

Besides...Walleye are tastier than Bass...no shortage of people willing to take the dead ones...lol 

That being said there are live release Walleye tournaments...they are usually on a catch/photo/release basis...like the Rapala Quinte Gold Tournament.

Edited October 4, 2022 by CrowMan

[OhioFisherman]

https://www.cleveland19.com/2022/10/04/gill-ty-prosecutor-meet-tuesday-with-odnr-over-fishing-tournament-controversy/

[Rizzo]

if it is not live release they should be cutting these fish open all the time! Took the guy seconds to track down those weights. 

[Rizzo]

..or at least anyone in the prizes should have some of their fish randomly tested

[glirw]

17 minutes ago, Rizzo said:

if it is not live release they should be cutting these fish open all the time! Took the guy seconds to track down those weights. 

Yeah, hard not to lay at least some of the blame on the organizers... you can't assume people won't cheat when there's so much money on the line... they should put an invigilator on every boat

[cuba2007]

Following up...  Some of the walleye tournaments give the weighed fish to shelters, to feed those less fortunate.  These guys refused to give theirs up one time.  (red flag)...  

Another point...  Cheating at this event, where they were actually caught, is the final straw.  They are done!  Names are mud, lowest of the low...  

As for their other "wins", with no substantial or actual proof they cheated, they can't be charged with anything.  Even now, after the fact, we can assume they cheated, but we can't confirm or deny they did.  

Lastly, I heard that their MNR has charged them with multiple felony counts for this last event.  Good on them, and remember this the next time you fish a tournament!  Someone will know, one way or another, if you aren't an honourable angler!

[OhioFisherman]

https://www.post-gazette.com/life/outdoors/2022/10/12/fishing-tournament-cheating-scandal-anglers-charged-jacob-runyan-chase-cominski-lake-erie-walleye-trail/stories/202210120134

https://www.wkyc.com/article/sports/outdoors/report-boat-trailer-cleveland-fishing-tournament-controversy-seized-investigators/95-608d1316-e605-45f9-b7f5-737c0310485c

 Famous to infamous over a tournament? No idea how much they enjoyed the winners circle spotlight, but playing fair prevents what they are facing now. No one to blame but themselves, they may need guards to watch their vehicles and trailers when trying to er... fun fish now? I can't picture any tournament allowing them to enter.

[JoePa]

https://www.foxnews.com/sports/two-men-embroiledlake-erie-fishing-tournament-scandal-enter-pleas-charges

[HTHM]

On 10/19/2022 at 4:04 PM, OhioFisherman said:

https://www.post-gazette.com/life/outdoors/2022/10/12/fishing-tournament-cheating-scandal-anglers-charged-jacob-runyan-chase-cominski-lake-erie-walleye-trail/stories/202210120134

https://www.wkyc.com/article/sports/outdoors/report-boat-trailer-cleveland-fishing-tournament-controversy-seized-investigators/95-608d1316-e605-45f9-b7f5-737c0310485c

No one to blame but themselves, they may need guards to watch their vehicles and trailers when trying to er... fun fish now?

They may not have a boat or tackle when this is over, so not much danger of that. Hope the judge has a strong arm and a heavy book.