Dierks Bentley went fishing — and ended up with a fine.
The musician, 44, accidentally got himself in trouble with the law while hosting his annual Seven Peaks Festival in Buena Vista, Colorado, over the weekend.
Enjoying free time on the water with buddy Luke Bryan, Bentley goaded his pal by joking on social media about how successful his catch was compared to his fellow country star.
“Day 3 off to a good start @sevenpeaksfest! #living (btw… @lukebryan only caught one and this is my third in 30 mins… not that it’s a competition… totally not… fishing and Seven Peaks is all about community and good vibes… but if it was a competition… I would be crushing him. But it’s not. But if… just saying),” Bentley captioned a photo of himself Monday holding up a brown trout.
Little did the singer know, Colorado requires a fishing license — which neither Bentley nor Bryan possessed — to practice the sport.
After seeing the star’s social media, Colorado concertgoers reached out to Colorado Parks and Wildlife to see if the country singers were in violation of the law, The Denver Post reported.
“We didn’t have any proof until Mr. Bentley posted a photo on his Instagram,” Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesman Bill Vogrin told the Post.
Bentley’s photo from Cottonwood Creek led officers to track down the singer, where they found out that he did not in fact have a license.
After being approached in town, the outlet reported, Bentley paid the $139.50 fine on the spot.
“He was as nice as can be,” Vogrin said. “We welcome him back any time to fish, as long as he gets a license next time.”
Following Bentley’s consequence, he warned Bryan in a since-deleted tweet that the country singer could receive a fine as well.
“Little heads up Lukey. Hardy…..?! Actually appreciate the ticket. Appreciate being treated like a regular person. Appreciate what @COParksWildlife does. I’ll be all licensed up next time! @LukeBryanOnline @HardyMusic,” read Bentley’s tweet, which included a video of himself being ticketed in an officer’s truck.
As of Monday evening, according to the Post, Bryan was not fined as he did not post any fishing photos, however, the “case is under investigation,” Vogrin added.
“It was very heartening that [the concertgoers] cared that much,” he said. “In Colorado, people love country music — but they also love their trout.”
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