The wasabi sauce wasn't the only hot food item at a Whangarei sushi joint - the paua being used was also hot, having been bought illegally - and fisheries officers are warning those who pilfer Northland's precious seafood they will be caught.
In Hee Kim, 56, who manages the Yummy Sushi Shop in Okara Shops, was last week fined $350 for buying paua that was illegally supplied by Craig Alistair Tipene, 42.
The pair appeared in Whangarei District Court for sentencing after pleading guilty to breaching the Fisheries Act with Tipene sentenced to 150 hours' community work, and had his car forfeited to the Crown for unlawfully possessing paua and obstructing a fisheries officer.
Their sentences came just two days after fisheries officers arrested a group illegally selling oysters door-to-door in Whangarei after a tip-off from the public.
The cases have prompted praise for the actions of the public that led to all the arrests and a warning from the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) that those who pillage the fisheries resource could expect to be caught.