(This came out of the Bellingham Herald this last weekend. What a fish hog and ass*&^% !)

As endangered spring chinook salmon wend their way toward the Nooksack and Skagit rivers this week, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife is sending a message to would-be poachers: stay away from the fish or lose your gear.

On Wednesday night, officers seized seven fresh wild steelhead that Gordon Leistiko, 42, of Bellingham, had caught on the Skagit, where steelhead are running now, officers said.

To protect the wild fish, the state has closed fishing on both rivers except for catch-and-release fishing on the Skagit near Concrete.

"Wild steelhead are in desperate need of protection," said Robert Lantiegne, a Fish and Wildlife enforcement officer. "We have spring chinook that are endangered coming in. ... We're increasing surveillance and patrols on the Skagit and Nooksack."

Lantiegne and fellow officer Troy McCormick seized the seven fresh fish and Leistiko's boat, motor, trailer and firearms - the guns because of a previous conviction. Leistiko paid a $1,050 fine for possessing steelhead during a closed season, but could face future charges, McCormick said.

"His freezer was totally full" with other frozen salmon and steelhead, Lantiegne said. "You have to ask yourself, why is he out there poaching when he can't put any more in his freezer?"

A Ferndale man who was fishing with Leistiko faces fines and gross misdemeanor charges for allegedly taking two steelhead.

Leistiko's boat is in state custody, but McCormick said Leistiko could seek a hearing to get his boat back. Under civil proceedings, Leistiko might get it back without a fine, but could have to pay up to 100 percent of the boat's value, McCormick said.

If he doesn't pursue the boat, Fish and Wildlife can keep it.

It was the second time this year that Fish and Wildlife officers have caught Whatcom County people poaching steelhead during a closed season. In early February, officers caught a Custer man posing for a photo with a freshly caught 22-pound steelhead in Lynden on the banks of the Nooksack River. His fish, gear and boat also were impounded.