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BAIL LOWERED FOR ONE IN ABALONE POACHING
CASE
Published on June 10, 1997
© 1997- The
Press Democrat
BYLINE: Clark Mason
Staff
Writer
PAGE: B2
A Sonoma County judge Monday lowered the bail for one of
three defendants in a large abalone poaching case who
was described as a middleman and the least culpable of the
trio.
Municipal Court Judge Frank Passalaqua reduced bail for
Chris N. Doan, 29, of Cupertino from $500,000 to $75,000,
saying there did not appear to be justification for the higher
amount.
Doan's family also was in court and expressed their
willingness to put up a house as bail collateral to ensure he
does not flee.
Doan and two commercial fishermen from Southern
California- Jason Diep, 30, of El Monte and Loi Boa Diep, 29,
of Rosemead -were arrested at the end of May as a result of a
sting operation by state Fish and Game Department officials.
Authorities said the men were carrying on both legal
and illegal trading in abalone and other seafood
delicacies, selling the products in Canada, Mexico and
Vietnam.
The case resulted in the largest single-day
abalone seizure in Fish and Game's history, with 1,700
abalone worth about $234,000 being seized.
The bust came after a game warden posing as a sport
diver sold abalone a half dozen times that was
represented to be from the North Coast, a closed district. The
abalone used in the sting came from mollusks that had
been used in scientific studies or that were seized previously
by Fish and Game.
Officials said they had information the suspects
previously were making illegal purchases of sport
abalone taken along the Sonoma County Coast.
On Monday, Doan's attorney, Robert Y. Bell of Santa
Rosa, described his client as a ``very young, immature, naive
29-yearold'' whose role authorities depict as that of a ``mule
or messenger.''
``It's clear he was a lower-level person,'' Bell said.
Prosecutor Brooke Halsey Jr. acknowledged that Doan has
been cooperative and provided authorities with a statement.
Doan's mother, sister and stepfather also appeared in
court to bolster Bell's contention that he comes from a
tight-knit family and does not present a flight risk.
Doan works at his family's hair salons in Cupertino and
the Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto as a barber and
manager.
Doan's co-defendant, Jason Diep, also was in court
Monday. Although Diep speaks English as a second language, the
judge agreed to provide an interpreter who speaks his native
Vietnamese dialect at future court appearances.
Loi Diep and Jason Diep are both seeking to have their
bail reduced as well. A preliminary hearing on the case
against the three men was scheduled for 1:30 p.m. June 23.
Keywords: FISH CRIME
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