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POLICE STOP
FISH POACHERS: Medicine Hat District
On
Aug. 27, 2007, three Calgary men appeared in provincial court as a
result of being found with a truck load of fish on Highway 1 near
Medicine Hat. Rene Jimenez, 58, Edgar Avisado, 44, and Marcos Dedios,
41, each entered a guilty plea to exceeding the possession limit for
fish. As a result, each was handed a $1,200 fine for a total of $3,600
in penalties.
On
Oct. 7, 2006, the Medicine Hat Police Service initiated a vehicle stop
for speeding on Highway 1. The officers located several boxes and
coolers of fish at the rear of the truck and immediately reported their
findings to Medicine Hat Fish and Wildlife officers. A Fish and Wildlife
officer attended the scene and located four boxes and four coolers of
whole fish.
The
officer was advised by the trio that they had been fishing in Manitoba
and received some of the fish as a gift. All three produced Manitoba
sport fishing licences and advised that they were bringing the fish back
for friends. While the investigating officer made some inquiries, it was
clear the three men were aware of the daily catch limits and size
restrictions for walleye and sauger. It was explained to the officer
that they were under the impression that they could catch and retain six
sauger per day and keep them in a freezer at home, and then catch
another six the following day. They admitted that this activity occurred
for a week. It was also learned they were given fish from friends, which
the three thought would not be included in their possession limit.
Further
investigation revealed that the fish in their possession included
walleye, sauger, drum, goldeye, striped bass and northern pike. The
total count for walleye and sauger was 332, only six of which were over
55cm.
In
Manitoba, daily limits are possession limits. The trio purchased
conservation licences that allowed them to possess four walleye/sauger
each (of which only one walleye can exceed 55cm) per licensed angler.
This would have allowed for a legal limit of 12 fish between the three
of them. However, after a staggering count of 332 fish, each angler
exceeded his possession by 107 fish.
ALBERTA
MAN BANNED FROM HUNTING: Whitehorse
District
An Alberta
man and two Yukon residents have received a total of $9,000 in fines and
lengthy hunting prohibitions following an investigation by the Yukon
Conservation Officer Service and the Alberta Fish and Wildlife Division.
Richard
Graves, 46, of Wetaskwin, David Odo, 35, and Robert Russell, 39, both of
Whitehorse, Yukon appeared in Whitehorse provincial court and entered
guilty pleas to Wildlife Act charges following a lengthy investigation.
The three men had arranged a grizzly bear hunt in the Yukon after Graves
met Russell and Odo on a website called “Canadian Gun Nutz”. Yukon
residents are permitted to obtain a special guide licence to guide
non-resident Canadians for grizzly bears in a small number of game
management subzones in the territory.
For
two weeks the trio hunted in their assigned area with no success, and
then decided to hunt on Haines Road, an area where they were not
authorized to guide a non-resident hunter. A grizzly bear was killed and
the tag of a Yukon resident hunter was placed on the bear in the event
they were checked while returning to Whitehorse. Within 24 hours, photos
taken of the kill were posted on the Canadian Gun Nutz website. The
harvest was reported to the Department of Environment with a false kill
location.
Conservation officers viewed the website and recognized the area of the
kill as being a closed zone for special guided non-resident hunters. An
officer located the bear carcass within two hours of learning of the
kill. When the three men realized they were under investigation, the
information posted on the website was removed.
Graves was subsequently handed a $1,500 fine, had his rifle, the $500
grizzly bear harvest fee and the grizzly hide and skull forfeited. In
addition to the fine and loss of firearm, Graves was prohibited from
hunting in the Yukon for seven years. Russell received a $1,500 fine and
hunting prohibition. Odo was handed a $3,500 fine and received a
three-year recreational hunting licence suspension along with a six year
prohibition from obtaining a special guide licence.
We
invite
wildlife
and
fisheries
enforcement
officers
from
all
jurisdictions
to
submit
current
and
significant
cases
for
inclusion
in
The
Notebook
segment
of
this
publication.
Details
of
case
files
can
be
sent
to:
Email:
gamewarden@wtc.ab.ca
or
ALBERTA
GAME
WARDEN,
Jeremy
Lindsay,
Box
690
Smoky
Lake,
AB
T0A
3C0
All
details
must
be
accurate
public
record.
Photos
are
welcome.
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