DNREC Fish and Wildlife Natural Resources Police arrested Matthew Tortu, 24, and Travis Gooding, 21, both of Coatsville, Pennsylvania on August 22 for multiple felony criminal charges and boating violations in response to and after investigating a report of a stolen vessel.

The suspects were allegedly observed before daybreak on August 22 in a vessel aground on a sand bar in the Indian River Bay by other boaters in the area who reported the incident and that the vessel occupants were not the owners of the subject vessel. Natural Resources Police officers responded to the report and arrested Tortu and Gooding at the site upon determining that the Maritime Skiff vessel had been stolen earlier that morning from Tuckahoe Acres where it was moored.

Tortu and Gooding were both charged with one count each of felony theft, felony conspiracy, criminal mischief, no boating safety certification, no navigation lights and negligent operation of a motor vessel. Gooding was also charged with one count of failure to maintain a proper lookout.

Tortu was arraigned by video phone with Justice of the Peace Court 3 and released on an unsecured bond of $4,040, pending a future court appearance in the Sussex County Court of Common Pleas.

Gooding was arraigned by video phone with Justice of the Peace Court 3 and released on an unsecured bond of $4,050, pending a future court appearance in the Sussex County Court of Common Pleas.

Defendants are presumed innocent and are entitled to a jury trial at which the State bears the burden of proving each charge beyond a reasonable doubt.

The public is encouraged to report fish, wildlife and boating violations to the Natural Resources Police by calling 302-739-4580 or through the DENRP Tip app on a smartphone, which can be downloaded free of charge by searching “DENRP Tip” via the Google Play Store or the iTunes App Store.

About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The Division of Fish and Wildlife conserves and manages Delaware’s fish and wildlife and their habitats, and provides fishing, hunting, wildlife viewing and boating access on nearly 65,000 acres of public land. For more information, visit the website and connect with DNREC on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media Contacts: Sgt. Brooke Mitchell, brooke.mitchell@delaware.gov or Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov

###

DOVER – Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) and Allen Harim, LLC have signed a Conciliation Order by Consent, Secretary’s Order No. 2018-W-0057, in settlement of past violations at Allen Harim’s poultry processing facility in Harbeson and at Allen Harim’s hatchery facility in Dagsboro, and including DNREC assessing an administrative penalty of $300,000 to Allen Harim. The Conciliation Order also calls for Allen Harim to terminate all spray irrigation activities at its Dagsboro poultry hatchery, and for the facility to connect to the Sussex County sanitary sewer system to address the company’s future wastewater needs. Upgrades already are in place at Allen Harim’s Harbeson facility addressing wastewater issues there.

From July through November 2016, Allen Harim’s Harbeson poultry processing facility had numerous violations of their National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) wastewater permit for ammonia, phosphorus, total suspended solids and bacteria. DNREC issued a Notice of Administrative Penalty Assessment and Secretary’s Order to address these and prior violations of the facility’s NPDES permit. Subsequent upgrades at the Harbeson facility has enabled Allen Harim to operate in compliance with their permit.

Allen Harim met with DNREC following issuance of that Secretary’s Order, during which violations at the Dagsboro hatchery were addressed. The Dagsboro hatchery has a permit that authorizes the spray irrigation of screened hatchery process wastewater under a set nitrogen-loading limit. Allen Harim’s 2016 and 2017 annual reports to DNREC show that the company exceeded those loading limits, and two onsite groundwater monitoring wells revealed an impact to groundwater from the spray irrigation operation. Through the conciliation order by consent, Allen Harim has agreed to terminate all spray irrigation operations at the Dagsboro facility.

This conciliation settles both poultry processing and hatchery facility violations for Allen Harim. The penalty assessment in the order requires that Allen Harim reimburse DNREC $7,888 for expenses incurred during the Department’s investigation.

The order also allows Allen Harim to perform an Environmental Improvement Project (EIP) within the Broadkill River Watershed to improve water quality by eliminating a source of nutrient runoff. Allen Harim may apply up to $150,000 of the assessed penalty towards implementing the EIP. This allowance by DNREC will not reduce the amount paid by Allen Harim, but will redirect part of the penalty into water quality improvements in the impacted watershed.

The consent decree can be found on the DNREC website.

Media Contact: Michael Globetti, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902