CLEVELAND — Two men who pleaded guilty to charges in connection with a Cleveland fishing tournament cheating scandal were back in court Thursday morning to face a judge for sentencing.
43-year-old Jacob Runyan and 36-year-old Chase Cominsky were both ordered to spend 10 days in jail for the September 2022 incident. Upon their release, Runyan and Cominsky will be placed on probation for one and a half years with their fishing licenses suspended for a maximum term of three years.
The judge also imposed a $2,500 fine, but cut that amount in half provided both make a charitable donation to an organization that focuses on fishing and children.
Their sentence comes after both admitted to charges of cheating (a fifth-degree felony) and unlawful ownership of wild animals (fourth-degree misdemeanor) in late March. As part of their plea, prosecutors agreed to dismiss additional felony charges of attempted grand theft and possessing criminal tools.
We streamed the entire court hearing, which you can watch in full below:
The case dates back to late last year when Runyan and Cominsky were competing at the Lake Erie Walleye Trail tournament near North Marginal Road and Lakeshore Boulevard. The pair were initially declared the winners, but controversy soon erupted.
"The director of the tournament noticed Runyan and Cominsky's walleyes weighed more than they looked and sliced open the fish," the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's office recounted. "Ten weights were located inside the walleyes, eight weighing 12 ounces and two weighing eight ounces along with several walleye filets."
The incident was caught on video and shared across social media. Runyan and Cominsky were immediately disqualified and later arrested.
"The tournament hosted fisherman from several surrounding states that competed to see which team could catch five of the heaviest walleye fish in Lake Erie," the prosecutor’s office noted. "If Runyan and Cominsky had won this tournament, they would have received a total prize of $28,760."
Prior to sentencing being announced, one of the defense attorneys said both Runyan and Cominsky will have to live with this incident for the rest of their lives.
"These guys are going to have to suffer this forever," the attorney said. "When they go on a date or when they apply for a job, anytime they’re Googled this case is going to come up."
Runyan and Cominsky each also offered an apology for their actions before the judge announced sentencing. You can watch their full apologies in the video below:
“I have no doubt that these two crooks cheated in multiple tournaments over the last several years," said Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O'Malley in a statement after the sentencing. "Unfortunately, we can only hold them accountable for what they did on September 30, 2022. Although these two deserve to have their fishing license suspended for life, the law only allows a maximum of three years. These two should be banned from every fishing tournament for life. They are thieves and now they are convicted felons. This sends a message to the fishing community that cheaters will be held accountable in Cuyahoga County.”
Cominsky's boat that was used during the tournament, which the prosecutor's office says has an estimated worth of $130,000, was also forfeited.
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