By Christie Wilson
Neighbor Island Editor
WAILUKU, Maui — A Circuit Court jury yesterday acquitted a retired state forestry official of using an illegal electroshock device to catch fish in Wailau Stream on Moloka‘i, but found him guilty of landing a helicopter in a state forest reserve without a permit.
Wesley Wong, 61, will be sentenced for the misdemeanor April 19, the same day as his son, Matthew, 32, who earlier pleaded guilty to the helicopter landing charge. The maximum penalty is a year in jail and a $1,000 fine.
The elder Wong, who retired as Maui District manager of the state Forestry and Wildlife Division at the end of 1999, was on vacation at the time of the May 7, 1999, incident.
A helicopter had flown the Wongs into a remote valley on Moloka‘i’s north shore. During Wong’s trial, several Moloka‘i residents testified they saw evidence indicating the two men were fishing with an electrical device, including cables from a box leading into the stream.
Wong attorney Philip Lowenthal said the box was merely an old military-style container in which the men stored equipment.
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