Whereas 1000’s of newbie anglers competed within the Massive Bass Splash on Sam Rayburn Lake over the weekend of April 20, a bunch of Texas recreation wardens carried out their very own kind of fishing expedition as they checked these anglers for stolen gear. Over the course of the match, wardens seized over $100,000 price of stolen boats and motors.
Officers with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Division referred to as consideration to the busts in a recent Facebook post, which refers back to the “saturation patrol” that was carried out at Sam Rayburn over the weekend. Much like a DUI checkpoint, the patrol subjected match members to a compulsory boat inspection by wardens. It was led by TPWD’s Marine Theft Investigation Unit, which coordinated with recreation wardens from six completely different East Texas counties. Altogether, they inspected round 300 boats, 243 motors, and 100 trailers.
In an e mail to Outside Life, TPWD recreation warden and MITU captain Jennifer Weaver clarified that the estimated worth of seized gear was $102,694. This included two boats and 10 motors. “The worth in boats was $27,700 and motors $74,994,” Weaver says.
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She explains that no arrests have been made, nonetheless, and that TPWD’s investigation is ongoing. This may embody wanting into the taxes and titles for the stolen vessels and outboard motors.
Weaver says the MITU noticed the Massive Bass Splash as a possibility to examine numerous boats in a brief period of time. As the largest newbie occasion of its type within the state, greater than 5,000 anglers entered this 12 months’s match, in accordance with one one who commented on TPWD’s Fb publish.
Sealy Outside, which hosted the match, proudly states on its website that it has supplied “the biggest assured payouts” in newbie bass fishing since 1984. And with this 12 months marking the occasion’s 40th anniversary, these payouts have been spectacular. Roughly $1.3 million in money and prizes have been awarded in complete, and the first-place finishers gained a grand prize package deal valued at over $300,000. This included a brand new Phoenix 21 PHX bass boat powered by a Mercury outboard and outfitted with the newest electronics, together with a RAM truck and $150,000 in money.
The promise of a giant payout drew members from throughout Texas and past. As TPWD’s patrol proved over the weekend, it additionally attracted some opportunists who may need been searching for a brand new goal or a technique to offload what they’d already stolen. Boats, ATVs, and different out of doors automobiles are sometimes singled out by thieves due to the excessive worth they will fetch on the used market. And because of third-party platforms like Fb market and Craigslist, it’s now simpler than ever to steal a bass boat from a ramp and promote it off shortly.
“Brings up a query I’ve had for years,” one commenter wrote on Fb. “All the time seeing folks promoting boats and trailers with no papers.”
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Weaver can’t communicate to a rise within the variety of stolen boats in Texas in recent times, however the creation of the MITU in 2020 says one thing in regards to the rising downside. She says that over the course of 2022 and 2023, the MITU seized greater than $2 million price of stolen boats and different objects.
“The unit is extremely motivated to return stolen objects to their rightful house owners,” Weaver says. “And it continues to attempt to higher serve the residents of Texas and their fellow Texas Recreation Wardens all through the state.”