Two Montauk, New York, brothers who managed the wholesale fish side of their family business, Bob Gosman Co. Inc., have avoided jail time after pleading guilty to their part in a fishing fraud conspiracy.

Bryan and Asa Gosman were sentenced by US district judge Joan Azrack at a court in Central Islip on Tuesday (Nov. 12), reports Newsday. The brothers, who had entered their guilty plea in Nov. 2021, were ordered to pay more than $247,296 each in restitution to the New York State Marine Resources account. They also each received two years of probation and $100 special assessments.

The case stems back to an April 2021 indictment that alleged Bryan and Asa Gosman, as well as Christopher Winkler, a former business partner and the captain of the F/V New Age, engaged in conspiracy to commit wire fraud and illegally overharvested fluke and sea bass between May 2014 and July 2016.

Approximately 200,000 pounds of fluke and black sea bass were overharvested during the period, with a conservative wholesale valuation of $750,000, according to the Department of Justice.

Judge Azrack said at the sentencing that the Gosmans' cooperation was "critical" in the case against Winkler, reports Newsday.

As for Winkler, in Oct. 2023, a federal jury in Central Islip convicted the fishermen of one count of federal criminal conspiracy, two counts of mail fraud and two counts of obstruction of justice.

"Fluke and black sea bass play a vital part in our marine ecosystem and quotas are designed to prevent overfishing and stabilize populations for the public good," said assistant attorney general Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division in a press release at the time. "We will continue to seek justice against those who flout laws that protect fisheries and the fishing industry." 

Winkler was sentenced in July to 30 months in prison and two years of supervised probation. 

Meanwhile, Gosman's Dock, which housed Bob Gosman Co.'s wholesale business and other related businesses, has recently been sold. Stephen Deckoff and his son, Stephen E. Deckoff, bought the waterfront area, which spans 11.6 acres on the Montauk Harbor, reports the NY Post. 

The sale price has not been confirmed, but the new owners told the newspaper that they paid less than the $45 million asking price.