Two Salisbury seafood store operators have been charged with having undersized crabs, Natural Resources Police said.
John Eric Crocket, 47, of Skipjack's Seafood, received 13 citations and Bobby Lee Leath, 56, of Fat Boy's Seafood, received one citation.
Investigations revealed that Crocket had 294 undersized crabs in his inventory and Leath had 13 undersized crabs in his, police said.
Candy Thomson, a spokeswoman for the Natural Resources Police, said the minimum size for a crab to be sold is five inches.
She said these two restaurants weren't "targeted," but rather a part of a routine seafood establishment inspection.
The Natural Resource Police inspect all seafood restaurants and vendors, including roadside stands, thomson said.
Officers returned the crabs to state waters, officials said.
The two men are scheduled to appear in Wicomico County District Court Sept. 6. If found guilty of all charges, Crocket could be fined a total of $5,300 and Leath could be fined $350.
Download the ABC2 News app for the iPhone, Kindle and Android
