Two people were indicted on charges of trying to steal money from a fishing tournament by stuffing fish with lead weights and fillets.
Jacob Runyan, 42, of Broadview Heights, Ohio, and Chase Cominsky, 35, of Hermitage, Pennsylvania, were indicted in Cleveland on charges of cheating, attempted grand theft and possess criminal tools. They are due to be in court.
The men didn't respond to the calls seeking comment.
The director of the Lake Erie Walleye Trail tournament became suspicious when Runyan and Cominsky's fish were heavier than the average one. At Gordon Park in Cleveland, a crowd of people watched as Fischer opened the walleye and announced that there were weights and fish inside.
The fish was seized by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
He did not return a phone call.
The prize money for winning the tournament would be almost $30,000.
A total of eight 12-ounce lead weights and two 8-ounce lead weights were found in the five walleye. Cominsky's boat, trailer and fishing gear were seized by officers from the Hermitage Police Department and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. According to the affidavits, the anglers used the boat during the tournament.
According to one of the affidavits, Runyan and Cominsky were investigated by the Rossford police in northwest Ohio after being accused of cheating in a different tournament. There wasn't enough evidence to charge the men, according to the police report.
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