From the Seattle Times:

Bellevue broker accused of falsely labeling fish from China

A Bellevue fish broker has been charged with labeling thousands of pounds of fish bought in China as halibut caught in the U.S., and then selling the fish at a profit to stores and restaurants, according to court papers.

Kevin Steele, the owner of Mallard Cove Resources, was charged today in U.S. District Court in Seattle with false-labeling of food and the introduction of misbranded foods onto the U.S. market. Steele, contacted today, said the charges were the result of negotiations between his attorney and federal prosecutors.

He will appear Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Brian Tsuchida, and said he plans to plead guilty.

"I'm just trying to minimize the impact on my family and my business," he said. "I've never been in trouble before ... these guys don't fool around."

From the Mallard Cove Resources website:

Mallard Cove is a well respected, well financed company with over 20 years experience within the seafood industry. We pride ourselves on supplying only the highest quality seafood products as well as delivering premier customer service....

Kevin Steele, a Washington Native comes from a Seafood Family. Kevin’s grandfather was the superintendent of a large cannery in Alaska.... When recently asked how he has maintained such loyalty from his customers he responded “It’s all about building relationships, I treat my customers like I treat my close friends”.

Fish by JTContinental from The Stranger's Flickr pool.