Federal prosecutors are looking to dismiss charges against the bookkeeper of fishing magnate Carlos Rafael.

In a motion filed today in U.S. District Court in Boston, prosecutors are seeking to drop charges against Debra Messier, who was arrested in February along with Rafael for lying to federal authorities about what species and the amount of fish Rafael's boats were catching in order to avoid federal quotas.

The dismissal of charges comes ahead of Rafael's trial, which is scheduled to begin in January of 2017. Prosecutors say the dismissal motion was filed "in the interests of justice."

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