On Nov. 12, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation police officers (ECOs) stopped a car on a rural road in Malone while investigating a poaching complaint.
A man in the car who was covered in blood told ECOs that there was a three-point buck in the car’s trunk. During the interview, the officers witnessed the man’s son feverishly trying to fill out a deer tag.
The father’s story about how he got the deer kept changing until he finally admitted to shooting it four times while standing in the road, leaning over the hood of the car.
ECOs ticketed the man for five misdemeanors and one violation, including the illegal take of deer, possessing a loaded firearm in/on a motor vehicle, and discharging from a roadway, among others.
The following reports are excerpted from DEC:
On Oct. 27, ECO’s ticketed a Suffolk County hunter for using a mineral block to bait deer. They also found an empty bag of deer feed at the base of the hunter’s tree stand. The hunter was ticketed for hunting over a preestablished bait pile. His bow and trail camera were confiscated as evidence.
On Oct. 22, an ECO ticketed a man in Southold for hunting deer with the aid of a preestablished bait pile, hunting with an unlawful crossbow, and hunting deer with a crossbow in Suffolk County. The ECO collected the hunter’s crossbow, bolts, trail camera, and bait corn as evidence.
On Oct. 3, two Suffolk County hunters trespassed on private land, but denied it when confronted by ECOs. After deploying a K9 to locate where the hunters had been, ECOs found obvious marks from a climbing tree stand, a scent wick, and a bow hanger in a tree on state property. They also found a photo of one of the hunters on a trail camera. The hunters eventually admitted they’d lied and were ticketed for trespassing.
On Nov. 7, an Otsego County hunter threatened an ECO for questioning him about taking two bucks during bow season. A state police officer and a forest ranger responded to assist. Officers determined the hunter never purchased archery privileges and charged him with hunting without a big game license and for taking two deer other than as permitted by law.
On Oct. 2, an ECO in Suffolk County discovered a bait pile surrounded by three trees stands. The ECO went back the following weekend and found two hunters who admitted to baiting the area. One of the hunters also confessed to shooting a doe with an arrow earlier that morning. Officers seized the doe as evidence, as well as the hunters’ bows, and samples of the bait. Both hunters were charged with hunting with the aid of a preestablished bait pile; the hunter who arrowed the doe faced an additional charge of illegally taking a deer.
A bear got caught in a coyote trap on Nov. 4 in the town of Cuba, Allegany County. Three ECOs approached the bear with a sheet of plywood with a hole cut in it to isolate the bear’s trapped paw. Two ECOs held the sheet of plywood against the bear while the third ECO freed the bear’s paw from the trap. The bear immediately took off into a cornfield, then returned to drink from a mud puddle. Click here to see a video of the release.
ECOs are asking for help in identifying the vehicle and people involved in a deer poaching incident in Greene County. On Nov. 22, officers responded to a home in the town of Lexington in search of a deer shot in the front yard of another residence. The incident was captured on a ring camera. Any information related to this complaint should be sent to ECO Palmateer at 518-478-1698, ECO Smith at 518-703-3529, or the New York State ECO 24-hour dispatch at 518-408-5852. All callers may remain anonymous.
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This article was first published by Syracuse on 1 December 2023. Lead Image: ECOs Okonuk (left) and Garrand (right) seized this buck on Nov. 12 in Malone from a poacher who shot it while leaning over the hood of his car.NYSDEC.
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