A teenager from Southampton has been fined over £350 for fishing illegally on the River Itchen in Eastleigh.
Joshua Cooper, 19, of Warren Avenue, was found guilty of fishing without a licence in May 2023.
The 19-year-old was fined £220 and had to pay further costs of £135 - £355 in total.
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Mr Cooper is one of ten individuals found guilty of illegally fishing in the south coast between May and August 2023 – with the offences taking place primarily on the Rivers Itchen and Test, according to the Environment Agency.
The anglers have been fined nearly £2,000 in total between them.
William Manning, 27, of Sleaford Road, Beckingham, in Lincolnshire, pleaded guilty having no licence to fish on the Test at Nursling in Southampton in June.
He was fined £95, with additional costs against him totalling £135.
James Allan, an enforcement officer for the Environment Agency, commented: “We will always prosecute those we find cheating the system.
“Money raised from fishing licences protects and improves fish stocks and fisheries, benefitting anglers.
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“These fishermen disregarded signs at the fisheries that said an Environment Agency rod licence was needed to fish.”
He added: “Licences exist to protect fish stocks and their habitats. Fishing without one could lead to prosecution and a fine of up to £2,500.”
Of the other arrests made, two men travelled from the East Midlands to the south coast to fish but were still caught, while the others came from Greater London and Oxford.
This included four of the men were caught at the same stretch of the Itchen in Winchester in May.
Hajri Karoshi, of Yeftly Drive, in Oxford, pleaded guilty to two offences. The 53-year-old was fined £105 for fishing without a licence, and doing so during the annual close season, which restricts fishing between March and June, paying costs of £135.
Likewise, Astrit Veshi and Andon Xhika, also from Oxford, fished the same part of the Itchen with no licence when restrictions applied.
Veshi, 49, of Rivermead Road, was found guilty and fined £220 for each offence.
Xhika, 36, of Cranmer Road, received £90 fines for each charge.
The Environment Agency carries out enforcement work all year round, supported by the police, the Angling Trust and fishing clubs.
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