Poachers... What a joke!

[Bonecollector]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Randy Hampton Northwest Region Public Information Officer 970-640-1647 / [email protected] UNCOMPAHGRE POACHING CASE ENDS WITH GUILTY PLEAS

Operation Game Thief offers rewards in poaching cases GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. - A 2019 poaching case on the Uncompahgre Plateau has been resolved following guilty pleas by three adults and two juveniles. The case began on the morning of November 9, 2019, when witnesses reported seeing a group of people shooting into a herd of elk on the Uncompahgre Plateau in Game Management Unit 61. The witnesses contacted Colorado Parks and Wildlife after seeing the other group shoot several elk and leave them to rot. Colorado regulations require that any animal harvested must have all meat prepared for human consumption. Responding wildlife officers found two dead elk, including a spike bull that had been dragged into some bushes and hidden without being gutted. Officers also found the gut pile of a third elk that had been shot and taken from the location. Based on witness descriptions, officers were able to locate the people involved in the incident at a nearby camp where additional evidence was gathered. The following individuals were charged in the case with the following resolutions following the entry of guilty pleas in Mesa County District Court: Floyd Kendall, age 68, of Grand Junction Willful destruction of big game and waste of wildlife $3,914.35 in fines and court costs plus a $1,000 donation to Operation Game Thief (OGT) Steven Creech, age 36, of Grand Junction Willful destruction of big game and hunting without a license $5,640.50 in fines plus a $1,000 donation to OGT Joseph Kendall, age 37, of Grand Junction Hunting without a license $371.50 in fines and court costs Juvenile 1 Illegal possession of wildlife and shooting from a public road $205.42 in fines and court costs Juvenile 2 Waste of wildlife and shooting from a public road $598 in fines and $500 donation to OGT While the incident did occur during a legal hunting season only two of the five members of the party who had shot that morning had valid hunting licenses at the time.

 

[minn elk chaser]

Were the license for unit 61 or some other unit? My son has waited 25 years for a bull tag in unit 61 and still is waiting. Even though we are non-residence it is stealing from us and the penalty should be allot worse than what they were.

 

[Bonecollector]

Yeah, I thought it was a joke! I wonder if one of them knew the judge or something. This is 'lighter' than normal.
Heck, they almost make if a better option than waiting out point creep... Gezzzz.

 

[mallardsx2]

"Where did you get those cool hooks?" Said the hunter who waited for 25 years to draw an elk tag.

"They cut my hands off for poaching" - Said no-one ever....

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

Says nothing about suspending their hunting licenses for future years. They should not be allowed to hunt for quite a few years.

 

[AKaviator]

Sportsman's groups and we sportsmen should really make an effort to educate and influence prosecutors and judges, when possible. Many, if not most, prosecutors and judges/magistrates are not active hunters/fishermen. (in my experience)
I make a point to help them understand the importance of appropriate sentencing. I've taken some of them flying, to point out terrain and the difficulty in even catching poachers in the vastness of where we hunt and fish. Sportsman groups can invite them to banquets and show them what we're all about. Even just sending short notes to them when we see them do the right thing goes a long way.
It's a better tactic than just calling them names when we disagree with light sentences.

 

[Winchester]

Great thoughts AK ... very well said!!

 

[marcusvdk]

Sportsman's groups and we sportsmen should really make an effort to educate and influence prosecutors and judges, when possible. Many, if not most, prosecutors and judges/magistrates are not active hunters/fishermen. (in my experience)
I make a point to help them understand the importance of appropriate sentencing. I've taken some of them flying, to point out terrain and the difficulty in even catching poachers in the vastness of where we hunt and fish. Sportsman groups can invite them to banquets and show them what we're all about. Even just sending short notes to them when we see them do the right thing goes a long way.
It's a better tactic than just calling them names when we disagree with light sentences.

Very well said AK

 

[Slugz]

Well that's embarrassing. I would have thought of all places....Grand Junction Co.......they would have brought the hammer down on them. Geez

 

[shootbrownelk]

Well that's embarrassing. I would have thought of all places....Grand Junction Co.......they would have brought the hammer down on them. Geez

They were Grand Junction residents that's probably why. Had they been Non-residents they would most likely been given the death sentence.

 

[JimP]

The sentencing that they got pretty much goes along with what others have gotten for poaching that I have seen. The article from CP&W could of just not listed the tag forfeitures and how long they will be without a chance to hold one. It would take a little bit of research to find out if it was included or not, but I believe that it is mandatory that they loose their license for a while. It also didn't state how many points were stuck on their licenses that goes towards not being able to purchase one. Usually in a poaching case it is right up at max points for forfeiture.