Police Officer Goes Undercover As Chef To Snag Illegal Lobster Trafficker

An Australian police officer posed as a chef to catch Tasmanian fisherman Mark William Eather in the act of illegally trafficking hundreds of kilograms of rock lobster, the sale of which is tightly controlled.

Eather is accused of trafficking 620 kilograms (approximately 1,367 pounds) of rock lobster through a fish factory in Boomer Bay, Tasmania.

Police secretly entered the facility to place tracing wire into 24 live rock lobsters so that their movements could be monitored.

When wired lobsters were sold to the undercover cop, each lobster registered a noise on a monitoring machine.

Eather is responsible for catching the seafood for a number of restaurants throughout Tasmania and Melbourne, including celebrity chef Neil Perry's Rockpool, according to ABC News Australia.

Eather's lawyer, who contends that his client was only running a legitimate business, has urged the judge to reconsider the charge of trafficking, which is normally reserved for the transport of illegal drugs and firearms.

The trial is expected to last up to three weeks.