4 men netted reef fishing with bleach plead guilty

LIHUE » Four Kauai fishermen were sentenced this week to jail sentences for pouring bleach onto reefs near Niihau.

David Carvalho, 43, Gavin Sadomiano, 28, and Aaron Hoff, 33, all of Lawai, and William Wong, 55, of Wainiha all pleaded guilty to cruelty-to-animals charges after Department of Land and Natural Resources officials observed them using bleach to scare fish from their holes along the reef.

The four men and a boy were arrested in June for putting bleach in a bag, pushing it into a hole in the reef and then popping the bag, officials said. The bleach forces the fish into a nearby gill net.

This week, Carvalho received 90 days' jail and a $2,000 fine, while Hoff received 30 days and $2,000.

Wong got 60 days and a $2,000 fine, and Sadomiano was sentenced to time already served in jail and 150 hours of community service.

All must complete a year of probation as well, prosecutors said.