2 Fishermen Sentenced to 10 Days in Jail for Cheating in Lake Erie Tournament

The two men who pleaded guilty to cheating at the Lake Erie Walleye Trail fishing tournament in September were sentenced to 10 days of jail time, a year-and-a-half of probation and a $2,500 fine, per Justin Dennis of WBKN.com.

Jacob Runyan, 43, and Chase Cominsky, 36, each pleaded guilty to felony charges of cheating and misdemeanor charges of illegal animal ownership after tournament directors and prosecutors accused them of making their catches heavier by stuffing them with weights and fish fillets.

They were also charged with both attempted grand theft and possessing criminal tools, though that pair of charges were dropped.

Additionally, the $130,000 boat they used at the tournament was forfeited to the Ohio Division of Wildlife and they had their fishing licenses suspended for three years.

"I just wanna apologize to everyone," Cominsky said Thursday, per Dennis. "It's a bad situation and it's something I wish I could say it didn't happen."

Runyan added that it was the "most ignorant decision I've ever made in my life."

The pair were the favorites entering the September tournament after a "curious run of success," as assistant county prosecutor Andrew Rogalski termed it, with Lake Erie Walleye Trail tournament overseer Jason Fischer adding that the duo had won nine of the 19 events he ran, with no other duo winning more than two in that time.

Per Dennis, authorities suspected Runyan of Cominsky of also cheating in the past, though evidence backing up those suspicions wasn't uncovered.

"They're forever gonna be branded with the labels of cheaters and thieves," Rogalski said. "After today, they'll be convicted felons. And nobody should feel bad for them, because they deserve this and they earned this."