These Eight Sushi Restaurants Were All Fined For Selling Fraudulent Lobster Rolls

In recent years, scientists and chefs have spoken out against the destruction of our endangered marine wildlife through overfishing and rampant seafood fraud. Mislabeled fish products are a bigger problem in seafood restaurants than the average consumer realizes.The city of San Diego has just proved this by rounding up eight sushi restaurants that were fraudulently selling lobster rolls that did not contain any lobster. Instead, the lobster rolls were stuffed with less-expensive seafood like crawfish or pollock.

The investigation that sparked the conclusion of this crustaceous crime was conducted in August and September of last year. Prosecutors concluded that the restaurant was not only guilty of false advertising, but the sneaky substitutes could present a health concern if a customer had allergies.

"Every single one that was tested was found to be false," said Kathryn Turner, chief deputy of the city attorney's consumer and environmental protection unit in court documents. "Consumers are paying for a premium product. They should be getting a premium product."

According to The Los Angeles Times, the defendants paid a combined $14,000 in fines and more than $5,000 for investigative fees, or more than $2,000 each.