Anglers’ fury as thieves cook their prized carp

ROMANIANS have been illegally plundering prized carp from lakes and boasting about it on social media, anglers claim.

They say up to 20 men have been seen stealing the fish – often served as a Christmas treat in eastern Europe – from pools in the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire before flaunting their catch on social media.

They are ignoring multilingual signs telling them to throw fish back into the water.

The Royal Forest of Dean Angling Club says it is a growing problem across the country, with illegal fishermen occasionally becoming violent when confronted.

In one photo shared on Facebook on June 9, a man grins next to a row of eight carp laid out in his kitchen. It will cost the angling club £2,000 to replace them.

In another image, a man poses next to Lightmoor Pool in Cinderford, Gloucestershire, with a common carp dangling from his fingers. Adrian Lane, the angling club’s water bailiff, said: ‘This problem has been going on for about five years but it’s gradually getting worse.

‘As soon as I saw those pictures on Facebook, I reported them to the police and it is now in their hands. But we have been dealing with these thieves on a daily basis.’

He added: ‘The cost of replacing the fish is astronomical – carp cost between £70 and £90 a pound.’

Mr Lane said he was looking into microchipping carp in an attempt to track them better.

A Gloucestershire Constabulary spokesman said: ‘No arrests have been made and no offenders identified, but officers from our rural crime team are working with the Angling Trust and the Environment Agency.’