After Chase Cominsky and Jake Runyan's fish weighed in at over twice the next heaviest catch, a suspicious judge cut it open and found lead weights inside. A fellow competitor tells Inside Edition he's accused the duo of cheating before.
Two fishermen are accused of cheating during a competition by putting lead weights inside their catch.
Chase Cominsky and Jake Runyan were competing for a $30,000 prize at the tournament on Lake Eerie. Their catch weighed in at 33.91 pounds — twice the amount of the next highest catch. A suspicious judge cut open the fish and pulled out weight after weight.
Ross Robertson, host of a popular fishing podcast, tells Inside Edition that there’s been suspicions about Cominsky and Runyan for some time.
“They got a little sloppy from the standpoint of, they put so much weight in such a small fish, relative, that it was very noticeable," Robertson said.
After the weights were pulled out on video, the crowd turned on the alleged cheaters as one of them just stood there in silence.
Nate Lueders paid $400 to enter the competition. He’s accused the duo of cheating before.
"They deny it and deny it to the point that they were threatening to sue me. And now look, you know, you're busted, what do you have to say for yourself? And he had nothing to say,” Lueders said.
Cominsky and Runyan are now being investigated by a local prosecutor. Since there was a $30,000 prize at stake, authorities are looking into a potential felony theft case.
Earlier this year, the pair accused of cheating won three other fishing tournaments.
