Fraud, Fistfights & Fakery Accusations! 'Wicked Tuna's Secrets & Scandals Exposed
April 28 2016, Published 10:21 a.m. ET
Wicked Tuna, wicked crazy! The Nat Geo reality show's fishermen have been arrested for fighting, fraud and more.
Pin Wheel Captain Tyler McLaughlin was arrested and charged last week with misdemeanor assault for reportedly punching a fellow fisherman in North Carolina.
He's gotten caught up in trouble before. On season 2, McLaughlin and his costar, Odysea captain Ralph Wilkins, got into a fistfight while filming.
He's not the only cast member dealing with accusations of violence. In January 2015, Hard Merchandise captain David Marciano was arrested for assaulting a clerk in a North Carolina hotel. ""We can confirm that one of the captains who appears on National Geographic Channel's Wicked Tuna series…was arrested, accused of pulling the ponytail of a front desk clerk at the hotel where he is staying during filming," a Net Geo spokesperson said in a statement. "We are cooperating fully with local authorities."
Looks like the Alaskan Bush People's Brown family isn't the only reality star clan with a fraud charge. Earlier this year, Wicked Tuna's Paul Herbert pled guilty to federal charges for receiving disability benefits while he was performing hard labor on the show.
Like the Deadliest Catch family, drug addiction and tragedy has also affected the Wicked Tuna community. Former star Adam Moser died at just 27 from an apparent opiate overdose last September, his parents confirmed to a local New Hampshire newspaper. "There will be a hole in our hearts forever," his mother said.
Is Wicked Tuna fake? Fans accused the reality show of deceptive editing in a 2014 episode, when cast member TJ Ott was caught holding two different types of reels in what was supposed to be the same scene.