One of many prime fishing YouTubers and Bassmaster Elite angler Ben Milliken was arrested final week in Nacogdoches County, Texas, and charged with freshwater fishing event fraud over a 13-pound largemouth he caught in February.
Milliken, 35, of New Caney, Texas, turned himself in to regulation enforcement at 9:27 a.m. Thursday, in response to an emailed assertion from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Division. Nacogdoches County Sheriff’s Workplace information point out he was launched inside half-hour. Milliken allegedly falsified data on a submission type for the Toyota ShareLunker program Legacy Class, which acknowledges anglers within the Lone Star State who catch largemouth bass that weigh no less than 13 kilos between January and March every year.
In February, Milliken caught a 13.18-pound largemouth at Lake Naconiche, a 693-acre lake in west Texas, which he entered within the TPWD Toyota ShareLunker Program.
“I observed the massive ones have been actually beginning to elevate up out of the comb on the underside of the lake,” Milliken informed TPWD in February. “I used to be utilizing slightly sixth Sense juggle minnow on a 1/16-ounce jig head and dropped it down and led her by an extended methods. Fortunate sufficient, she got here proper as much as it and ate it whereas I used to be twitching it in, so it was fairly superior. I caught her utilizing a spinning rod with a six-pound braid and six-pound fluoro chief, so it was a very gentle line. I fought it perpetually, however she got here proper as much as the floor, and once I noticed her, I knew it was an enormous one so I took my time and acquired her in. It was fairly thrilling!”
When officers reviewed the main points of Milliken’s catch, they found some discrepancies.
“Throughout the due diligence course of this fall, previous to distributing program prizes on the Toyota ShareLunker Banquet, it was found that Milliken didn’t have a legitimate fishing license on the time the fish was caught and knowingly falsified the competition/event entry type,” TPWD wrote in a press release. “Along with the cost for fraud in a fishing event, Milliken was disqualified from the Texas ShareLunker Program and cited for fishing and not using a legitimate license.”
Milliken’s catch has since been faraway from the Texas ShareLunker archives record.
Beneath the ShareLunker Program, anglers who land qualifying largemouths over 13 kilos can mortgage the fish, which qualify as “Legacy Class,” to TPWD for selective breeding and stocking. Anglers should weigh Legacy Class catches on a licensed scale. To be accepted into the spawning program, the fish should even be alive and in good well being.
Anglers who catch and mortgage a Legacy Class bass obtain a prize package deal consisting of decals, a reproduction mount of the fish, and a “swag package deal” from Bass College. Qualifying anglers are additionally entered into two separate drawings, every with a grand prize of a $5,000 purchasing spree from Bass Professional Retailers.
TPWD spokesperson Maggie Berger couldn’t confirm if Milliken’s large largemouth was used within the selective breeding or stocking program on the time of publication.
Milliken didn’t land his 13-pound bass in the course of the course of a Bassmasters Elite event. Based on Texas statute 66.119, nevertheless, a fishing event is any contest “wherein a prize is to be awarded to a number of contributors within the contest based mostly on weight, size, quantity, or sort of fish caught.”
In Texas, freshwater fishing event fraud is a category A and B misdemeanor. Residents should buy a $30 license to fish legally within the state.
“I can’t make any statements or feedback about [the arrest] as a result of it’s an ongoing investigation,” Milliken stated in a YouTube video. “However I didn’t need to go away you guys at midnight or make you assume I used to be attempting to cover one thing. The nice factor is, ultimately, I’m going to have the ability to share a video as soon as that is all found out explaining what precisely has occurred in what I really feel is an enormous misunderstanding. I don’t know if that will probably be cleared up and found out within the subsequent week or if it should take 5 or 6 months.”
Making an Instance of Milliken
Ben Milliken’s latest arrest has raised a whole lot of questions and sparked loads of controversy and rumors. As a result of the cost was “event fraud” many wrongly assumed that Milliken was caught dishonest in a professional event. However, because the mud settled over the weekend and a number of the particulars emerged, it appears a lot of the controversy was blown out of proportion.
Milliken is among the most well-known Bassmaster Elite Collection anglers after only one yr on tour. This stems primarily from his YouTube fame which he constructed over time prior to creating the Elite’s. With greater than 572,000 subscribers, Milliken Fishing is among the largest bass fishing YouTube channels on the market. All through his rise to fame, he’s at all times been a bit polarizing and tough across the edges — like beginning his movies with the slogan, “What’s up MFers.”
Nonetheless, his capacity to catch massive bass — and a great deal of them — has led him to the place he’s in the present day.
Simply days previous to his arrest, Milliken was appointed to the model new Bassmaster Elite Angler Advisory Board, which was launched in “an effort to facilitate higher communication and collaboration with Elite Collection anglers.”
Clearly, all anglers needs to be correctly licensed earlier than hitting the water, but when the allegations are true, Milliken wouldn’t be the primary skilled angler to have forgotten to purchase a license. It’s vital to keep in mind that this incident had nothing to do with event fishing, and is solely being regulated like one. Milliken was reportedly fishing recreationally in his house state on the time.
Whereas it’s not clear precisely what occurred, the foundation of the costs focus on when, precisely, Milliken could have realized his alleged error. To be eligible for the Share Lunker program, contributors should have a present fishing license and full all the required types. It’s unlikely a participant would be capable to accurately fill out the paperwork with out realizing they didn’t have a present fishing license.
Many anglers have argued that an arrest on this incident was overly aggressive. The fact is, in the event you make your dwelling from fishing, you need to observe all the guidelines or pay the worth. All the things Milliken does on the water is documented on video, and that comes with an additional degree of public scrutiny.
If it performs out as TPWD asserts, this Milliken incident is simply the tip of the iceberg relating to YouTubers bending the foundations within the identify of fishing content material. YouTubers have fished in personal ponds in order that they can movie the native “Karens” dropping their minds, and a few have even gone into restricted areas to allow them to catch fish on digicam.
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It appears as if these small-time rule breakers don’t get caught; even after they do, they’re not sufficiently big to make a splash. Sadly for Milliken, he’s an enormous fish within the YouTube pond and TPWD clearly selected to make an instance out of him. Milliken has already posted a press release on Instagram acknowledging his run in with regulation enforcement, although he didn’t present an evidence for what he says occurred. Hopefully we get his aspect of the story and he owns any errors in order that we will all transfer on in time for the Elite Collection season to get underway in February.
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