Department of Commerce
National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration
NOAA Fisheries Service
- Office for Law Enforcement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 25, 2006

FORMER NOAA FISHERY OBSERVER SENTENCED TO FIVE YEARS PROBATION; ORDERED TO PAY RESTITIUTION OF OVER $29,000

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced this week that former NOAA observer, John Depersenaire, was sentenced to five years probation and ordered to pay restitution of $29,541. This sentencing followed a plea deal that was signed last month in Trenton , N.J.

Depersenaire pled guilty to a misdemeanor charge of embezzling / having received public money which he is not authorized to retain as salary. This plea followed a three-year investigation by NOAA Fisheries Service enforcement agents that revealed Depersenaire falsified data from 59 at-sea sampling trips from October 2001 through February 2002.

Depersenaire failed to conduct fishery sampling trips aboard federally permitted fishing vessels while still accepting his salary during this period .

Accurate fisheries observer data helps NOAA gauge whether the nation's fishery resources are sustainable. Scientists use observer data to assess the health and abundance of fish populations, and managers use the information to develop regulations that govern the fishing industry.

In 2007 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, celebrates 200 years of science and service to the nation.  From the establishment of the Survey of the Coast in 1807 by Thomas Jefferson to the formation of the Weather Bureau and the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries in the 1870s, much of America 's scientific heritage is rooted in NOAA.

NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 60 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.

To report illegal fishing activities contact the NOAA Fisheries Service's Enforcement Hot Line at 800-853-1964.   

On the Web:
NOAA Fisheries Service: www.nmfs.noaa.gov
NOAA: www.noaa.gov