CUSHING, Maine (AP) – The Maine Marine Patrol’s stepped up surveillance following lobster turf wars that erupted in a shooting on Matinicus Island has led to an arrest.
Maj. John Fetterman says a lobsterman from Cushing was given a summons Tuesday after he was observed cutting 22 traps lines belonging to a competitor. Fetterman says the suspect, 31-year-old Heath Yeaton, works with his father, 52-year-old Bradley Yeaton, also of Cushing.
The younger Yeaton, who couldn’t be reached Wednesday, faces a charge of molesting traps. It’s a civil charge, but a conviction carries a mandatory 3-year loss of a lobstering license.
Citations are unusual because it’s hard to catch someone in the act of cutting a trap line at sea. Fetterman says there are only “a handful” each year.
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