A FISHERMAN must hand over more than £395,000 for flouting fishing quotas or go to jail for three years.

Paul Gilson, 56, of Undercliff Gardens, Leigh, has been given six months to pay the cash in full.

He now faces the prospect of having to sell his home, boat and his other assets to meet the fine.

Gilson was caught out when a routine check on a fish auction in Zeebrugge in March 2007 led to an investigation by officials from the Marine Fisheries Agency in Britain, a court heard.

It emerged he had both bought fish from, and sold fish on behalf of, 34 fishermen in the Southend area – yet he failed to supply the necessary documentation which allows fish quotas to be monitored.

Gerard Pounder, prosecuting, told how Gilson’s actions had put the UK at risk of being fined by the EU for landing too much Dover sole, which experts say need to be conserved.

As well as buying fish from other local fishermen and selling them on their behalf, Gilson also landed fish on his own boat, the “Janeen”.

Mr Pounder explained; “After he had sorted, weighed and packed the fish into boxes for auction it was impossible to say where it had come from.”

Gilson should have provided paperwork for fish he caught, purchased and sold. Yet officials, who examined his records, found the necessary documents had not been submitted.

It was estimated Gilson had failed to declare 21 tonnes of Dover sole which had been landed by small boats in the Southend area, which he sold at auction in Belgium for more than £138,000.

Mr Pounder said no sales notes existed for a further 40 tonnes of fish.

He said: “All this fish went off the radar.”

Some had been sold at Lowestoft and Billingsgate.

Mr Pounder said some of the fish was a result of so-called “black fishing” with the catch never being declared. Gilson had sold fish to hotels, schools, restaurants and members of the public.

At Ipswich Crown Court, Mr Gilson pleaded guilty to three offences of failing to submit a sales note, between April 2006 and March 2007.

He also pleaded guilty to 24 other offences including failing to keep an accurate log book for the “Janeen”, using a sales note with false details, failing to submit accurate records and furnishing false details of the quantity of fish landed.

The court heard that a financial investigation had put the benefit to Gilson of his offending at £424,372. However his total assets, including his boat, amounted to just £395,139.

Judge John Devaux made an order under the Proceeds of Crime Act that Gilson would have to pay the entire £395,139 – or face imprisonment.

The Proceeds of Crime Act takes into account all known assets of an offender in an attempt to recoup as much as possible of what they gained from their crimes.

Gilson was described in references, provided to the court, as a “pillar of the community” who in 2000 had been awarded Freedom of the Borough of Southend for his work in support of the community and the lifeboat.

Judge Devaux said there was no evidence Gilson had lived a lavish lifestyle or that he had concealed assets.

His actions had not been motivated by greed, the court heard.

Judge Devaux imposed a nominal £10 fine, saying it was not realistic to impose the normal £10,000 fine for each offence as there was no prospect of Gilson being able to pay. For the same reason the judge said he was not ordering Gilson to pay any of the £83,796 prosecution costs.