A Port Sulphur woman pled guilty to theft of oyster violations in the 25th Judicial District of Plaquemines Parish on Aug. 23.

The Honorable Judge Michael Clement accepted Lien Troung’s guilty plea for unlawfully harvesting oysters from a private lease and sentenced her to pay a $900 fine plus court costs.  Troung was also placed on one-year probation that forbids her from being on board any vessel harvesting, possessing, possessing gear to take, or processing oysters for a period of one year unless the vessel she is on is equipped with a vessel monitoring device that is monitored by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement Division.

The guilty plea stems from an incident in March of 2022 when LDWF Agents were on patrol in the Grand Bayou area located in Port Sulphur responding to theft complaints from local lease holders.  Agents witnessed Troung and two occupants in an aluminum flat boat harvesting oysters by hand.

Agents made contact with Troung and the occupants for a license and Departement of Health vessel sanitation inspection.  Agents determined that Troung and the occupants were harvesting oysters from a private lease with no written permission from the lease holder to harvest the oysters.

The two other occupants, Vivilio Velasquez and Carlos Vasquz, were both issued bench warrants by the court for failing to appear and answer to the charges.

Assistant District Attorney Jerry Lobrano prosecuted the case for the state.  Agents participating in the case were Lt. Adam Young, Sgt. Jason Gernados and Corporal Thomas Forehand.