Exaggerated fish stories are as much a part of fishing as the rod and reel.
But one Northwest Indiana man’s supposed fishing prowess really was too good to be believed, according to the Illinois Conservation Police.
David Moore, 49, of St. John, is facing multiple misdemeanor charges in Cook County, Illinois, after police allegedly caught him cheating in a bass fishing tournament earlier this month.
According to police, Moore caught four smallmouth bass May 10 in Lake Michigan in Hammond, Indiana, and subsequently transported them across the state line and hid the fish on a stringer in the Calumet River in Chicago ahead of a fishing tournament on that stretch of river set for the next morning.
The Calumet River flows through Chicago’s southeast side.
On May 11, conservation police said, they watched the location where Moore allegedly stashed the fish, saw him retrieve four smallmouth bass from the stringer and observed Moore placing the fish in the live well of his boat before throwing the string on the shore and driving away.
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Police confirmed Moore was registered in the Cal-Sag Bass Anglers tournament and waited for him to return to the tournament’s weigh-in location.
The total weight of Moore’s fish was 19.5 pounds — more than 4 pounds greater than any other competitor and worth a top prize of $1,300 if Moore had been allowed to claim it, police said.
Instead, Moore was cited for attempting to commit theft, possession over the daily limit of three smallmouth bass, failure to immediately release smallmouth bass unharmed, taking and possessing smallmouth bass resulting in wanton waste, throwing fishing wire on the bank waters, and importing Viral Hemorrhagic Speticemia-susceptible species into Illinois without a permit.
Altogether, Moore was charged with two Class A misdemeanors, four Class B misdemeanors and one petty offense, records show.
Moore also has been permanently banned from all Cal-Sag and Big Lake Bass Angler tournaments and events, according to the organizations’ directors.
