Shake up in Texas.. Cheater Caught

Brian D. · Post by **Brian D.** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 9:21 am

Hot news flying around all the TX Fishing Forums...

This guy is done.

http://www.budlighttrail.com/BLT/newsrelease.html

Bud Light Trail News Release (10-25-2009)
USA Bass Trails officials, who manage and own the Bud Light Trail (BLT) bass fishing tournament program, would like to release a statement regarding the disqualification of one of the contestants from the Lake Ray Hubbard Big Bass Tournament held on October 24, 2009. Statements have been withheld until now in order to ensure all the facts were obtained and the information was given to the proper law enforcement authorities.

During an hourly weigh in at the BLT Ray Hubbard Big Bass Tournament an angler brought a large fish to the weigh in check point. The fish was transferred from the weigh bag containing the fish to the official weigh bag. The BLT Tournament Director, after weighing the fish, asked that the fish be put in a holding tank behind the weigh in stage. This fish would have been the largest fish of the hour. After the hourly weigh in was completed the angler was asked to take a polygraph. This is required for all participants who catch the biggest bass of the hour. During inspection of the fish, by the fish handler and the tournament director, irregularities were discovered. A decision was made by tournament officials to interrupt the polygraph and have the angler and polygraph examiner witness an inspection of the bass. The angler was asked to remove the contents in the stomach of the bass or the contents would be inspected by BLT officials by whatever means possible. The angler chose to remove the contents and a lead weight was removed from inside the fish and handed to a tournament official. The angler then apologized to all who witnessed the removal of the lead weight. He was notified by the tournament director that he was disqualified. No objection or explanation was given by the angler as he left the weigh in location. The fish and lead weight were then reweighed separately and pictures were taken. The Texas Game Wardens were immediately notified. Statements were given by tournament officials and all evidence was given to the Texas Game Wardens.

All of us involved with the BLT program are saddened by this situation and the impact it may have on the angler, his family and friends. The BLT officials will cooperate with the legal authorities as they proceed with the evidence provided to the Game Wardens. The BLT officials, speaking both as anglers and tournament providers, want our anglers and sponsors to know that we will do our best to provide a fair and honest tournament event. We wish to thank all the anglers who have fished with us this year and hope that you will continue to do so.

Thank you,
USA Bass Trails/Bud Light Trail Officials

Jason_33 · Post by **Jason_33** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 9:41 am

yeah I guess a 2lb bass with a 5lb dumb-bell hanging out of its
mouth would look suspicious.

JRS · Post by **JRS** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:20 am

Yes it is hot news here in Texas. That's about what most people were talking about at the tourney I was at on Sunday. I guess he was a big stick over here, with tons of money won and a bunch of sponsorships. From what I've heard his web site spouts his christianity. Hope it's true, because he's going to need it! I guess the amount of money that was up for the win makes it a third degree felony here in Texas!!!!

cib11b · Post by **cib11b** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:28 am

What a POS.. I hate people who cheat! Glad he got cought and deserves what is coming to him..

cib11b · Post by **cib11b** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:28 am

Are the pictures open to the public?

Andrew Jackson · Post by **Andrew Jackson** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:47 am

Per the TFF website and others that have fished against him for years he has won alot of cash and boats fishing by himself. The man is lower than dog squat under foot.

cib11b · Post by **cib11b** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:48 am

Andrew Jackson wrote:Per the TFF website and others that have fished against him for years he has won alot of cash and boats fishing by himself. The man is lower than dog squat under foot.

Ya, by himself so he can shove sinkers down there throats.. He should have to pay every guy he fished against there tourny entry fee back.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:50 am

Here's another thread on this topic. The angler's name is Robby Rose and he took his website down (www.robbyrose.com). Sounds like he was arrested. This was really troubling:

http://bbcboards.zeroforum.com/zerothre ... id=4492818

They didn't even have to give him a poly. The fish he weighed in sunk to the bottom of the tank and couldn't swim. So, they pulled the fish and found the weight in it's stomach. They then took him aside and questioned him. He admitted it before they administered a poly. He was cuffed and taken away. This crime has a maximum sentence of $5,000 and one year in prison. I think with his record of tournament wins, he just might get the maximum sentence.

Now you wonder how many fishermen that actually won the tournaments that Robby took the first place money in got cheated out of a lot of money. He quit fishing BassChamps when they suspected him and put an observer in his boat as a condition of him fishing the tournaments.

I would guess that he will have to move far away and start a new life for the sake of his family. He will never be able to fish in a tournament in the US for the rest of his life. I can't imagine letting greed get to a man to such a degree.

I feel a deep sadness for his wife and family in the years to come.

Somehow though, we must find it in our hearts to forgive him for his sin. We don't have to like the man or ignore what he did. But, it's not up to us to pass judgement. It's up to the man above.

JKitz · Post by **JKitz** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 11:10 am

What a Piece of Work.

That reminds me.. What ever happened to the Heigels from San Diego. Did they ever get that Super Glue Endorsement? Or do they have an infomercial for their Heigel Rig coming out anytime soon. I heard its going to "snag" some good cash in the future.

I haven't heard their names in a while. I hope they are in a bowling league and someone put some super glue in their bowling balls.

To have to cheat to win just a few 1000 dollars is lame.

biteme · Post by **biteme** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 11:22 am

How would you ever feel good about a win? Some people.

DanIsaac · Post by **DanIsaac** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 12:30 pm

Kudos to the Org for being so tranparent.

Dan

cib11b · Post by **cib11b** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 1:26 pm

he should be hung or burned at the steak.

N.A.R · Post by **N.A.R** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 1:32 pm

JKitz wrote:What a Piece of Work.

That reminds me.. What ever happened to the Heigels from San Diego. Did they ever get that Super Glue Endorsement? Or do they have an infomercial for their Heigel Rig coming out anytime soon. I heard its going to "snag" some good cash in the future.

I haven't heard their names in a while. I hope they are in a bowling league and someone put some super glue in their bowling balls.

To have to cheat to win just a few 1000 dollars is lame.

JKitz to let you know Tom Heigel was a super fisherman. What happen was team fishing blew up here in San Diego with payouts going from 1200 for 1st to over 4 grand simply over night . Tom and his son made some life changing decisions. That I am sure they would regret to this day. We lost Tom about a year ago, no way should this be his legacy. Tom was a great teacher of the sport who made a huge error in his ways.

Tony

Levy · Post by **Levy** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 1:52 pm

NAR wrote:We lost Tom about a year ago, no way should this be his legacy. Tom was a great teacher of the sport who made a huge error in his ways.

Tony

I could not disagree with you more. This is exactly what his legacy should be!!!

I am sick of people who do not believe there are lasting consequences to thier actions!!!

Jon

Doug Warren · Post by **Doug Warren** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 2:34 pm

I did a search for Robby Rose and this guy has won lots of tourneys, cash and boats fishing by himself. What a piece of work that guy is.

Murph · Post by **Murph** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 2:42 pm

He is one of the Favorites of the Bass Champs T.V. Show.

cib11b · Post by **cib11b** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 3:24 pm

Murph wrote:He is one of the Favorites of the Bass Champs T.V. Show.

Not N-e-more

bassindon69 · Post by **bassindon69** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 4:10 pm

Is this why I have so many 2nds and 3rds ?

Man I hate losing by 2 oz.

But hey, top 3 is the place to be....

Don.

MikeSouza · Post by **MikeSouza** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 4:28 pm

Yeah he was one heck of a stick when he fished alone. You put a co-angler, spectator or a TV in the boat and he can't catch them. Smells fishy!!!!!!!

Look at his BASS stats. Winnings of 600 bucks in 21 events
http://proxy.espn.go.com/outdoors/bassm ... lerId=4401

longshot · Post by **longshot** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 5:06 pm

We all fear that there is a cheater amongst us BUT I beleive eventually they get caught and the consequenses are practically deadly........ and rightfully so.
I am sorry its tough out there and with the money for top prize and bills piling up I think its going to happen more and more. Sometimes to the point that a "good" guy goes bad!!!! And loses everything.
Just like Conseco, Bonds ect. anytime they are mentioned all you will think of them is CHEATER!!!!!! Non of the records ect. have meaning.
L.S.

619 · Post by **619** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 6:45 pm

I really wish our tournaments and directors would conduct lie detector tests. To this day I'm not sure why they don't. It would rid our sport of cheaters and keep people honest. We know it's happening so why not lie detect. It's almost like we don't want to deal with it.

Why don't we use lie detectors at our tournaments?? Tell everyone that Random anglers in the top 10 and winner will be tested.

questions: Have you ever cheated in a tournament.
Did you cheat today. Cmon already its time.

MikeSouza · Post by **MikeSouza** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 7:06 pm

A polygraph can be beaten! It is not 100% accurate. A polygraph will not hold up in court for that exact reason.

Every Tournament I fish here in Oklahoma and Texas have a polygraph for the winner. Some will have two test, one for the winning team and the other is random throughout the field

Greg_Cornish · Post by **Greg_Cornish** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 7:06 pm

I hope my wife doesn't hear about this. She'll fill me full of sinkers and put me in a fish tank.

Steve Reed · Post by **Steve Reed** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 8:08 pm

Yeah polygraphs are really well... mostly for the show because honestly they are so unreliable and inaccurate that they are completely dismissed in a court of law.

I think its easy for most fishermen to believe someone cheated if they don't pass but if they do pass they still believe they cheated. Its really a lose/lose situation.

So, I think the only thing that can be done is to make EXTREME examples of the ones who get caught and hopefully that will deter anyone who considers cheating.

619 · Post by **619** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 4:23 am

A Polygraph would run the low life scum bags away. I don't think they would even fish the derby if they new they would be tested.
Although the dirt bag in this post was going to get one.

We need to do something. We know its happening for sure, Lets not kid ourselves. How can we fix it?

bassman619 · Post by **bassman619** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 4:42 am

He probably watched other fishermen with binoculars during prefish too. What a scumbag. I totally agree that the Hiegals legacy is the cheaters father and son...

RMARX · Post by **RMARX** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 5:41 am

Sad to see a guy destroy everything he MAY have worked to create with one rash decision. I love the binocular people!!

bassindon69 · Post by **bassindon69** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 8:56 am

So anyone want to buy my boat and everything?

davet. · Post by **davet.** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 9:14 am

Sad to see a guy destroy everything he MAY have worked to create with one rash decision. I love the binocular people!!

Apparently it wasn't "one" rash decision. Most likely he did it so often that the law of odds finally caught up with him.
Personally I think lynching or burning is a waste of good rope and wood on this POS. Hope he has to move away.

some guy · Post by **some guy** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 9:29 am

bassindon69 wrote:So anyone want to buy my boat and everything?

cib11b · Post by **cib11b** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 9:44 am

davet. wrote:
Sad to see a guy destroy everything he MAY have worked to create with one rash decision. I love the binocular people!!
Apparently it wasn't "one" rash decision. Most likely he did it so often that the law of odds finally caught up with him.
Personally I think lynching or burning is a waste of good rope and wood on this POS. Hope he has to move away.

I agree I think he got to comfterable doing it and getting away with it he went to far and finally got busted.

MikeSouza · Post by **MikeSouza** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 12:57 pm

RMARX wrote:Sad to see a guy destroy everything he MAY have worked to create with one rash decision. I love the binocular people!!

This guy didn't work hard for squat. He knew what strings to pull and had many pupets believing he was a bad a$$ in the front of the boat. This is not the first time he cheated, it's just the first time he was caught.

Guy fishes alone and sometimes with partner and make 40k+ a year fishing bass champs for 4 years straight. Partner can't pass poly and Robby has to take poly and passes. From what I have heard, he has been taught to beat the Poly.

So he has fished Bass Champs with partners he knows personally and by himself. He makes a lot of money doing it. So in my opinon Robby should be one hell of a stick. He fishes 21 BASS events and only makes 600 dollars. Hmmmmm, something just doesn't add up.

Now to the event he was caught cheating in. First off, why in the heck does he have a 1 pound salt water weight in the boat? I now look at this as it was planned before he launched his boat that morning. Many local anglers have suspected he was cheating in many tournaments, but couldn't prove it. He wasn't a good angler, but one hell of a good cheater.

RMARX · Post by **RMARX** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 1:49 pm

OK - I was just trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, but I do not know him and you do so it is what it is! Now to answer your question about a heavy lead weight in the boat, out here in California on the deep lakes we fish, sometimes when you get a really large fish(9 + pounds) from down deep they are hard to deflate with a needle, so I have an 8 ounce trolling sinker that I attach to my rod then slip it into the fishs stomach and let it go back down, and when it is ready to go you just gently pull it out and reel it in and the fish stays down. (Thanks Rob) So there is a reason for someone to carry some heavy lead! But to put that much in a fish and try to weigh it is pretty stupid! OK REALLY STUPID!! Pigs get fat and Hogs get slaughtered really must apply to this guy!

JRS · Post by **JRS** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 4:35 pm

RMARX,they don't know west coast deep. I know thats true in cali (having to fizz fish) but what I'm finding here in Texas is there's really no one that fishes deep in Texas(deep here is 15 feet!). Heck I was out today prefishing for a tourney this weekend and I'm thrown' crankbait at the bank in 61 degree water. Seriously, deep here is c-riggn in 15-18 foot of water.

JRS · Post by **JRS** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 4:51 pm

Speaking of Texas deep.. I just won a tourney this weekend. My fish came out of 8-10 foot of water and I was probably fishn atleast 6 foot deeper than everyone else out there.

JKitz · Post by **JKitz** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 7:02 pm

N.A.R wrote:
JKitz wrote:What a Piece of Work.

That reminds me.. What ever happened to the Heigels from San Diego. Did they ever get that Super Glue Endorsement? Or do they have an infomercial for their Heigel Rig coming out anytime soon. I heard its going to "snag" some good cash in the future.

I haven't heard their names in a while. I hope they are in a bowling league and someone put some super glue in their bowling balls.

To have to cheat to win just a few 1000 dollars is lame.
JKitz to let you know Tom Heigel was a super fisherman. What happen was team fishing blew up here in San Diego with payouts going from 1200 for 1st to over 4 grand simply over night . Tom and his son made some life changing decisions. That I am sure they would regret to this day. We lost Tom about a year ago, no way should this be his legacy. Tom was a great teacher of the sport who made a huge error in his ways.

Tony

I don't doubt at all that Tom was a great fisherman and its sad to hear about Tom's passing. But, even in team bass fishing, you have to represent the sport, because you are role models to others. I remember I used to look up to a lot of team fishermen (and still do) by reading the results in magazines years ago.

But if you mention the names of Barry Bonds, Mark Mcgwire, Pete Rose, and others that have made terrible (or alleged terrible) decisions, you will also hear "cheating" mentioned in the sentence. Its always the last thing you do that seems to be the lasting impression. And we all know that every one of the names i mentioned were great baseball players, and probably deserve to be in the Hall of Fame. But they will always be "labeled."

It was a choice they made, and obviously have to live with it. No one forced them to cheat.

tunaman · Post by **tunaman** » Tue Oct 27, 2009 10:34 pm

Two words... Sandy Defresco!

Sad... really sad!
Roger

619 · Post by **619** » Wed Oct 28, 2009 4:00 am

Sad thing is that two other teams were caught doing the thing in the same tournament here in San Diego. One team is doing Salt Water now and his partner is back east I heard.

At the end of that tournament my partner and I were walking to my truck and the third place team told my partner and I that we would probably get first and he would get second because the Hiegels are going to get DQ'd for cheating.

My partner and I went off on this guy for even thinking Tom and Kyle were cheaters. Chis and I learned alot from the Hiegels. We were in the same club for years. That guy probably thought we were in on it because we were so upset with him.

After I saw the Video and saw three teams doing the same thing. I lost some interest in fishing Team events. I'm sure others have lost there interest to support also. Who wants to get there hard earned money stolen by some dirt bag piece of sh@#.

People are snagging shad, and bass, netting floaters in the middle of the lake that were culled out from a deep wide open spoon bite, Do I need to tell more. Who knows what else.

Again what do we do. I know of three caught cheaters that are still allowed to fish tournaments and the tournament org know who they are its not a secret.

The Heigel deal Jacked me up big time as you can see. Maybe someday I will become a tournament director so I can put some of my idea's into action.

some guy · Post by **some guy** » Wed Oct 28, 2009 6:19 am

619 wrote:Sad thing is that two other teams were caught doing the thing in the same tournament here in San Diego. One team is doing Salt Water now and his partner is back east I heard.

At the end of that tournament my partner and I were walking to my truck and the third place team told my partner and I that we would probably get first and he would get second because the Hiegels are going to get DQ'd for cheating.

My partner and I went off on this guy for even thinking Tom and Kyle were cheaters. Chis and I learned alot from the Hiegels. We were in the same club for years. That guy probably thought we were in on it because we were so upset with him.

After I saw the Video and saw three teams doing the same thing. I lost some interest in fishing Team events. I'm sure others have lost there interest to support also. Who wants to get there hard earned money stolen by some dirt bag piece of sh@#.

People are snagging shad, and bass, netting floaters in the middle of the lake that were culled out from a deep wide open spoon bite, Do I need to tell more. Who knows what else.

Again what do we do. I know of three caught cheaters that are still allowed to fish tournaments and the tournament org know who they are its not a secret.

The Heigel deal Jacked me up big time as you can see. Maybe someday I will become a tournament director so I can put some of my idea's into action.

+1

Some of the things you see in a derby are just mind blowing. Its not even that much money honestly. Are these people doing it for the money or thier own egos?

MikeSouza · Post by **MikeSouza** » Wed Oct 28, 2009 8:47 am

RMARX

I used to live in Cali up until 4-5 years ago. Fishing Shasta and Orville in the winter down to 50-60 ft and having to pop fish all the time. Give me a needle and I'm good to go. LOL

I understand what you are saying about the trolling sinker though, never thought about that. Now days I don't have to fish that deep anymore, just 20-40 in the winter.

bassindon69 · Post by **bassindon69** » Wed Oct 28, 2009 9:25 am

So do I take this as a NO?

jgbw · Post by **jgbw** » Wed Oct 28, 2009 10:22 am

I fished a bunch of those Bass Champ tournaments! I want my money I apparently donated to him. There has been rumors for years about him which I chose not to believe until now, good for the organization that caught him.

Otay Michael · Post by **Otay Michael** » Thu Oct 29, 2009 11:34 am

Guess they will need to borrow an Airport x-ray machine and send all the fish through!

Jason_33 · Post by **Jason_33** » Fri Oct 30, 2009 10:37 am

how big was the weight?

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