$2,000 reward bighorn sheep poaching

[cmc]

$2,000 reward offered in bighorn sheep poaching

 

The Arizona Game and Fish Department is asking for the public's help in finding a poacher that killed a Rocky Mountain bighorn ram on June 22 or 23 in the Red Hills, a few miles west of the Blue River corridor of eastern Arizona.

 

"The poacher killed a mature, trophy-quality ram and hid the carcass in the bushes, leaving it to waste," says Bruce Sitko, public information officer for the Arizona Game and Fish Pinetop office. "He may possibly have intended to return later to retrieve the head."

 

Sitko says this crime is further compounded by the fact that this ram was part of the Foote Creek herd; a herd that has been in decline the last several years. "Removing it from the breeding population obviously affects the herd's potential to produce future offspring, as well as impairing the department's ability to offer hunt permits for bighorns in the area, which are highly sought after by sportsmen," notes Sitko.

 

The department received more than 2,100 applications for the five permits that were authorized last fall.

 

To report information on this incident, or any Game and Fish violation, call the department's Operation Game Thief hotline at (800) 352-0700. Caller identities may remain confidential upon request. Callers are eligible to receive a reward for information leading to the arrest of the violator in this bighorn poaching case of up to $1,000 from the department, with an additional $1,000 being provided by the Arizona Desert Bighorn Sheep Society if the information provided leads to a conviction. Information may also be reported directly to the Arizona Game and Fish Pinetop office or by calling (928) 367-4281.

[GameHauler]

If there is one thing I hate as much as a theif

It Is a Poacher

 

And that may have been my ram for next year

[DesertBull]

That makes me furious.

 

One thing though. If I were the investigator, I would not have made this public. I would got a couple of those IR game cams and set them up over the carcus. Couldn't hurt. Maybe the dingleberry comes back for the head in a few days and you can plaster his picture all over the papers, news, and internet.

[KGAINES]

Killing a bighorn doesn't happen by accident, it sure isn't self defense, and he didn't feed his or her family with the meat, this person needs to be fully prosecuted and there should be no leniency whatsoever.

[AZP&Y]

Still don't think the legislation is enough, along with the 2000 grand to catch the coward.

6. For each trophy or endangered species animal $8,000.00

 

More needs to be done from legislative level and it needs to be treated like a crime scene...

 

http://www.azleg.gov/FormatDocument.asp?in...amp;DocType=ARS

 

AzP&Y

[mattys281]

I don't even know what to say to that. I sure hope they catch the person(s) & prosecute to the fullest extent possible.

[youngbuck]

It does say 8,000 is the minumum. Maybe they will make an example of the pocher, when they are caught

[cmc]

If I were the investigator, I would not have made this public.

 

If you notice the damage was done a few weeks before the release of the info. So there was that chance but being that it was in a remote area for the unit it'd be a lot of time spent sitting on the carcass for possibly nothing. Game cams wouldn't fare very well either as the offender probably would have walked away with a trophy sheep and a few new game cams. In these cases it's probably best to get word out and hope that the dill hole blabs about it to someone and that some has the nads to turn the poacher in. In any event I hope the ram rakes in a ton of money in the assets auction to help offset the wickedness from the loss of a ram in that herd.

 

Again I hope someone steps forward and turns the punk(s) in that did this. Unreal.

 

cmc

[tucrats]

"Again I hope someone steps forward and turns the punk(s) in that did this. Unreal.

 

cmc"

 

ditto I totally agree.

[Huntn coues]

What a fricken jag off...

[Coues 'n' Sheep]

"Again I hope someone steps forward and turns the punk(s) in that did this. Unreal.

 

cmc"

 

ditto I totally agree.

 

 

Same here...... that just makes me frickin' sick!

[.270]

too bad. remember a few years ago when they guy shot the bighorn ram inside of the Arizona/sonora desert museum? when they finally caught the guy a friend of mine reminded me that we met this joker once. talk about a serial poacher. he was good pals with another joker i knew. i'm thinkin' he might have some romantic interests in sheep too. too bad. my kids put in for that unit. Lark.