Xavier Roger
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The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office announced Monday that the two fishermen who allegedly stuffed walleye with lead weights and fish fillets to try to win a fishing tournament in Ohio in the fall have pleaded guilty to charges that included cheating.
The fishermen — Jacob Runyan, 43, of Broadview Heights, Ohio, and Chase Cominsky, 36, of Hermitage, Pennsylvania — will be sentenced May 11 for charges of cheating and the unlawful ownership of wild animals. The cheating charge is a fifth-degree felony and the unlawful ownership one is a fourth-degree misdemeanor.
As part of the plea deal, both men agreed to suspensions of their fishing licenses for three years and Cominsky agreed to the seizure of the boat used during the tournament, which is worth $100,000.
“This plea is the first step in teaching these crooks two basic life lessons,” Cuyahoga County prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley said in a statement. “Thou shall not steal, and crime does not pay.”
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The total prize of the tournament at which Runyan and Cominsky were caught allegedly cheating was $28,760.
James Gallagher, an assistant Cuyahoga County prosecutor, said his office will recommend a sentence of six months’ probation and the expungement of their convictions if probation conditions are met.
In October, both Runyan and Cominsky had previously entered not guilty pleas during a brief court appearance.
How did Jacob Runyan and Chase Cominsky get caught for allegedly cheating at the Lake Erie Walleye Trail tournament?
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources investigated the matter on Sept. 30 after videos went viral that showed the fish Runyan and Cominsky presented at the tournament being cut open to reveal lead weights and fish fillets stuffed in them to make them heavier. The tournament allowed competitors to present their five heaviest walleye caught in Lake Erie.
According to the investigation, tournament director Jason Fischer became suspicious after the walleye presented by Runyan and Cominsky were significantly heavier. Fischer sliced open the fish, according to the investigation, revealing 10 weights — eight of which weighed 12 ounces and two of which weighed eight ounces — stuffed inside the walleyes, along with several walleye fillets that had been packed into the fish to boost their weight.
In the videos that went viral, an angry crowd shouted insults at Runyan and Cominsky, who were immediately disqualified and asked to leave the tournament.
Contributing: Associated Press
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