Four men from Homer and Anchor Point charged with illegal commercial fishing last year will receive fines and probation,

Eric Winslow, 63, Paul Roth, 36, and Mark Roth, 66, all of Homer, and Robert Roth, 40, of Anchor Point, were all charged last year by Alaska Wildlife Troopers with various crimes relating to illegally driving salmon from waters closed to commercial fishing into open waters, and then harvesting them in Dogfish Bay (also called Koyuktolik Bay). Altogether, 33,328 pounds of salmon were taken.

“The boats went in there, they found out there was a lot of fish in that area, and four boats worked together to push these fish into a ball, and push that fish toward a set,” Rex Leath, a captain with the Alaska Wildlife Troopers, said of the incident last year.

All four men were found guilty on May 29, according to an Alaska Wildlife Trooper online dispatch report. Homer District Court Judge Margaret Murphy found Mark Roth guilty of driving salmon from closed waters, and failure to provide information to a fish transporter. He will be fined $11,000 with $7,500 suspended, and was given one year of probation, according to the dispatch. Paul Roth was found guilty of commercial fishing in closed waters, and failure to provide information to a fish transporter. His fine is $4,000 with $2,000 suspended, and he also got one year of probation.

Robert Roth was found guilty of failing to obtain a fish transporter permit, failure to complete fish tickets, and unlawful possession of fish. His sentence is a $4,000 fine with $2,500 suspended and one year probation.

Winslow was found guilty of driving salmon from closed waters, failure to provide information to a fish transporter, and failure to display vessel license. His punishment is an $11,200 fine with $7500 suspended and one year probation.

Ten thousand pounds of salmon were forfeited to the state after the incident, according to the dispatch report. Robert Roth was given 22,000 pounds of fish back that were determined to not be illegal, he said Thursday.

Troopers wrote that during sentencing, Murphy emphasized that her goals were to rehabilitate the men and deter similar crimes in the future.

“It’s important that everyone understands that driving of salmon and fishing in closed waters cannot stand,” troopers wrote.

Reach Megan Pacer at mpacer@homernews.com. This article was updated on June 6 with additional information.