A Beaufort County man and a Hyde County man pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to illegal harvest and sale of Atlantic striped bass.

Ellis Leon Gibbs Jr., 53, of Engelhard, and Dwayne J. Hopkins, 43, of Belhaven, were under investigation for illegal harvesting in federally protected waters, according to a release from the U.S. Department of Justice. Gibbs also pled guilty to obstructing a boarding by the U.S. Coast Guard.

According to the release, Gibbs harvested more than 9,000 pounds of the striped bass from January 2009 to February 2010, a retail value of more than $72,000. The release states that Hopkins illegally harvested more than 7,000 pounds of striped bass during the same period, a retail value of more than $55,000.

Both Gibbs and Hopkins initially told authorities they caught the fish in state waters.

“NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement is committed to ensuring a level playing field for the fishermen who play by the rules. When people cheat the system, it hurts those who follow the rules the most,” stated Eileen Sobeck, assistant administrator for NOAA Fisheries.

After the Atlantic striped bass stock plummeted in the 1970s and 1980s, management recommendations were presented to help recover the species, and the Atlantic Striped Bass Conservation Act passed in 1984.

The National Marine Fisheries Service enacted a harvesting ban in 1990 in the Exclusive Economic Zone for areas measuring between three and 200 miles off the Atlantic coastline. Gibbs and Hopkins were caught harvesting in this area.

Female spawning stock then increased rapidly in the 1990s, peaking around 2003.

Since 2004, the stock has slowly declined, despite a 2016 assessment that “indicates the resource is not overfished nor experiencing overfishing relative to the biological reference points,” according to a report from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.

“Today, the striped bass population is considered healthy; it is not overfished and overfishing is not occurring. However, the spawning biomass has been declining for the last decade and is approaching an unsustainable level,” said Max Appelman, ASMFC management plan coordinator. “When these regulations are broken, it undermines the management and regulatory program of the Atlantic striped bass FMP, among other repercussions (like hurting those who follow the rules).”

Gibbs and Hopkins will appear in court for sentencing on April 24. Gibbs faces up to 10 years in prison and/or a $500,000 fine. Hopkins faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.