CLEVELAND (WJW) — Two men accused of cheating in a walleye fishing tournament on Lake Erie pleaded guilty on Monday.

Jacob Runyan, 43, of Ashtabula, Ohio, and Chase Cominsky, 36, of Hermitage, Pennsylvania, were each indicted in October on felony charges of cheating, attempted grand theft and possessing criminal tools, and a misdemeanor count of illegal animal ownership. They initially pleaded not guilty.

But on Monday, each pleaded guilty to a felony count of cheating and a misdemeanor animal ownership violation. The remaining charges were dismissed.

The pair is due for sentencing on May 11.

  • Jacob Runyan
  • Chase Cominsky in a Cuyahoga County court on charges related to the fishing tournament (WJW photo).
  • Jacob Runyan, left, and Chase Cominsky, sit in court as they are arraigned, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022, in Cleveland. The two pleaded not guilty to cheating and other charges in a lucrative fishing tournament on Lake Erie in the end of September where they were accused of stuffing five walleye with lead weights and fish filets. (AP Photo/Mark Gillispie)
  • Chase Cominsky, together with Jacob Runyan, has won a slew of fishing tournaments with cash awards and major prizes in recent years. The two were accused of cheating late last month, after organizers of a fishing tournament found lead weights in their catches. (WKBN)

(WJW photos)

In the September 2022 tournament, anglers from several surrounding states competed for the heaviest walleye catches, according to authorities. The pair stood to win a prize of more than $28,000.

A tournament judge, however, noticed the fish caught by Runyan and Cominsky weighed more than they would have appeared. The judge sliced the fish open and inside were multiple weights, between 8 to 12 ounces, and several walleye filets. The pair was disqualified and told to leave the tournament.

Other anglers angrily confronted Runyan, while Cominsky quickly retreated to his truck and locked the doors.

In recent years, the pair won a slew of fishing tournaments with cash awards and major prizes that included a fishing boat, in what some thought was the most incredible run of luck ever on Lake Erie. The Toledo Blade reports that the pair finished in first place in the three Lake Erie Walleye Trail events last year, pocketing tens of thousands of dollars, in addition to prizes from other contests.

“You have individuals who committed a fraud trying to obtain money. That’s a fraud in any context whether it’s a fishing case or some Ponzi scheme,” Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor James Gutierrez said in October.

Authorities suspected the pair of cheating in past tournaments but never found evidence of any crimes, Gutierrez said.

Organizers of the fishing tournament intend to use metal detectors and lie detectors in future tournaments.