MOREHEAD CITY – Daniel Ipock always knew he wanted to work in law enforcement. He also loved being on the water.

But it was not until he began working closely with the N.C. Marine Patrol during a stint in the U.S. Coast Guard that he put the two together.

“When I was in the Coast Guard there at Emerald Isle, that was where I really learned about Marine Patrol and decided that’s the way I wanted to go, if the opportunity every arose,” Ipock said. “That was the best of both worlds.”

Since joining Marine Patrol in 2008, Ipock has earned the respect of his fellow officers – so much so that they nominated him for the Governor’s Award for Marine Patrol Officer of the Year for 2011. He received the award Sept. 8 at the North Carolina Wildlife Federation’s Annual Governor's Conservation Achievement Awards banquet and celebration.

Ipock is known among his colleagues as a hard worker and quick learner. His tenacity and thoroughness have provided huge dividends for several extensive cases dealing with fraud and deception in the seafood industry.

Most notably, in 2011, Ipock investigated tips that a fish dealer was covering up over-harvest of oysters by some fishermen by using license information from other fishermen, who knew nothing about the scheme. Ipock spent long hours poring over hundreds of trip tickets and license information and conducting interviews to make the case, and the dealer pleaded guilty to the charges.

This initial case led to three other dealer investigations by other Marine Patrol officers. In all, the officers uncovered 5,588 bushels of illegally harvested oysters.

Ipock, 33, lives in Washington with his wife, Teia, and two children, Trent, 4, and Tucker, 3. He grew up in Washington and attended Emmanuel Christian School. He graduated in 1997.

For more information, contact Ipock at 252-946-6396 or Daniel.Ipock@ncdenr.gov. Download a photograph of Ipock at http://portal.ncdenr.org/web/mf/091712-ipock-photo.

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