The Ministry of Fisheries is applauding a fishing ban placed on a man it describes as a serial paua poacher.
Ekana Manahi has been convicted in the Christchurch District Court of taking excess and undersized paua at Boulder Bay near Godley Head.
In September, fisheries officers found Manahi and Te Kohu Campbell with 72 paua, of which 66 were below the legal size. The daily paua limit is 10 per person.
The judge banned Manahi from fishing for three years and ordered him to do 250 hours of community work.
The judge also indicated that if Manahi was caught fishing, he would be likely to face a jail sentence.
Manahi has several previous convictions for offences related to paua poaching.
Te Kohu Campbell was given the lesser sentence of 150 hours community service.
