PORTLAND — A New Hampshire fisherman has been convicted of assaulting a Coast Guardsman who had boarded his vessel after he was found operating in a restricted area off Maine’s coast.

Federal prosecutors say 53-year-old Scott Jellison of Derry, N.H. was convicted by a jury Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Portland.

Authorities say Jellison’s vessel was operating in an area closed to civilians in November 2010 because of a U.S. Navy SEALs training exercise.

Coast Guard officers boarded Jellison’s boat. Jellison said his navigation equipment was broken, but the Coast Guard checked and found it worked.

Coast Guard officers concluded Jellison was intoxicated. Authorities say Jellison assaulted a Coast Guard officer and resisted attempts to subdue him.

Jellison faces up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine at sentencing.


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