A Neguac man was sentenced to 156 days in jail, fined $54,500 and banned for life from hunting in New Brunswick after a nine-month investigation known as Operation Meat Bag, the provincial government announced Monday.

Gilles Allain pleaded guilty to 27 violations of the Fish and Wildlife Act: 12 counts of hunting moose out of season, seven counts of offering moose meat for sale, four counts of illegally possessing moose meat and four counts of possessing moose meat without a cold-storage permit.

As part of his punishment he is also banned from Crown land for two years.

Allain was one of six people charged as the result of Operation Meat Bag, conducted in the Miramichi and Neguac areas between March and December 2016.

Fines against the six totalled almost $108,000, and they received a total of 317 days in jail.

Allain had previously been sentenced for Criminal Code and Maritime provinces fishery regulations violations.

The sentences for the others ranged from 14 to 70 days in jail and between $9,000 and $12,200 in fines.

Operation Meat Bag also netted a number of items that were used in the poaching or were the fruits of poaching, including two half-ton trucks, 40 sets of moose antlers, 25 rifles and one pistol.

