Two Lower Keys Men Arrested After Yearlong Lobster Poaching Investigation

A yearlong surveillance operation involving four federal and state agencies ended on Aug. 31 with the arrest of two Lower Keys men on a combined 136 counts of violating Florida's spiny lobster harvest laws, capping one of the most extensive marine poaching investigations in recent Monroe County history.

Shane Matthew Sweeting, 54, of Big Pine Key and Michael Wayne Kimbler, 54, of Key West were both arrested after investigators documented them commercially harvesting spiny lobster within 10 yards of artificial habitat across 54 separate sites spanning state, federal, national refuge and marine sanctuary waters. Sweeting, identified by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission as a commercial lobster diver, faces 54 counts of harvesting lobster within 10 yards of artificial habitat, 14 counts of failure to display an air identification placard, 14 counts of failure to display a water identification placard, and three counts of seafood quality control code violations. Kimbler is charged with 51 counts of the same artificial habitat harvesting violation.

The artificial habitats at the center of the case were low-profile structures, each roughly 4 by 8 feet and just 4 to 6 inches in height, built mostly from PVC, rebar and sheet metal and placed across dozens of sites to concentrate lobster in areas the men allegedly worked repeatedly.

Four agencies participated in the investigation: the NOAA Office of Law Enforcement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Division, and the FWC Division of Law Enforcement.

"I'm very proud of the teamwork and effort put forth by all of the personnel who worked on this investigation," said Col. Roger Young, Director of FWC's Division of Law Enforcement. "Conserving our precious natural resources for future generations is important work and these arrests today serve not only as a testament to the seriousness of these actions but also a warning to others who would exploit those resources for profit."

The Sweeting and Kimbler arrests were not the only enforcement actions to emerge from Monroe County waters in recent months. On a Sunday in 2025, Middle Keys Marine Deputy Wille Guerra cited Eliecer Martinez, 35, of Sunrise after spotting him diving without a dive flag around noon with a 13-year-old boy present. Deputies found 36 undersized, wrung lobster tails stuffed in Martinez's pockets and hidden in nearby mangroves, along with a homemade spear used to take small lobsters. Martinez had no fishing license or lobster endorsement and was cited for harvesting without a measuring device, possession of undersized lobster, over-the-limit lobster, speared lobster, and wrung lobster tails in the water. The 13-year-old was not cited after investigators determined he had not harvested or possessed any lobster.

Later that same afternoon, Guerra found Rene Perez, 30, of Miami at the south end of Bahia Honda Bridge around 5 p.m., diving without a flag and dropping lobsters from his waistline. Perez had a speargun and told the deputy he was unaware lobsters could not be speared. He was found with three undersized lobsters and cited for possession of undersized lobster, speared lobster, wrung lobster tails in the water, and failure to have a measuring device while in the water.

Other recent cases underscored the breadth of enforcement activity across the Keys. Yin Fong Lam, 59, was sentenced to 12 months of probation and barred from fishing and diving in Monroe County waters for that period after being adjudicated guilty of possessing an undersized spiny lobster and harvesting lobster with a spear. The court suspended a 30-day jail sentence, ordered Lam to complete an FWC education course, and assessed $568 in fines. Investigators had recovered a spear belonging to Lam and an undersized lobster bearing puncture marks consistent with spear harvesting.

On Aug. 5, Monroe County Sheriff's Office deputies patrolling the bayside of Grassy Key around 11:45 p.m. spotted a 17-foot Mako running without lights. Aboard were Daily Brito Fernandez, 27, of Marathon, and Dorgis Rodriguez Lugones, along with a lobster trap. Fernandez was arrested for trap molestation, possession of out-of-season lobster, and acting as a principal in a crime. Lugones had been arrested earlier that week on similar charges, including tampering with evidence.

The scale of the Sweeting and Kimbler case, 54 monitored sites and charges numbering into the dozens for each defendant, reflects the kind of sustained commercial exploitation that FWC says directly threatens both the ecology and the economy of the Florida Keys.