Collaborative investigation work by New York DEC Police with the Town of Tonawanda Police Department recently led to numerous charges for two Wayne County poachers. Following an investigation, the poachers were charged with several violations of Environmental Conservation Law, including three misdemeanors. Each will pay a $1,000 penalty and face revocation of their hunting privileges.
The investigation began on Dec. 6, 2021, when ECO Mathis received information that two individuals had taken large bucks in the closed area of Erie County in the Town of Tonawanda. The suspects had posted videos of their hunts and photos of the deer on Facebook. A local wildlife photographer familiar with the poached deer met ECO Mathis and Tonawanda PD Officer Ansel in the area where the deer may have been shot.
After hours of searching, the group was able to determine the exact location of where one of the suspects posed with his deer and found blood and deer hair at that location. They were also able to determine the approximate location of where the second deer was shot based on the video footage. Facebook posts also led Mathis to the taxidermist where the racks were located, in Monroe County. The racks were quickly collected as evidence by ECO Snowden.
Armed with this information and the photographic evidence, ECO Mathis and Lt. Thomas drove to Wayne County to interview the suspects. During the interviews both suspects admitted to taking the deer illegally in Erie County and tagging them as if they were shot in Monroe County. One of the suspects also admitted to shooting his buck with a rifle. Hunting deer with a rifle is illegal in Erie County.
The suspects were charged with taking deer in a closed area, illegally taking whitetail deer, hunting deer with a rifle in a non-rifle county (all misdemeanor level offenses), and failing to properly tag the deer (a violation).
DEC encourages anyone who suspects environmental violations, including illegal hunting, to contact DEC’s Division of Law Enforcement 24-hour dispatch at 1-844-DEC-ECOS (1-844-332-3267).
