A Texas woman was arrested in Key West Thursday after she was found in possession of 40 queen conch, a protected species in the state of Florida.
John Martino, an officer with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, found Diana Candelario Fiscal-Gonzalez in possession of the queen conch after receiving an anonymous tip. Queen conch are illegal to commercially or recreationally harvest in the state, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
It appeared the queen conch were collected by Gonzalez, 29, and several children. Gonzalez took responsibility for all the harvested conch, which were found in plastic containers on a residential driveway.
Gonzalez was arrested and cited for possession of prohibited queen conch. She was booked into Monroe County Detention Facility, according to a news release.
Martino returned several of the conch back into the ocean after taking pictures of the sea creatures for evidence.
