FWC Division of Law Enforcement Weekly Report September 11, 2015 thru September 17, 2015

(Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.) FWC Division of Law Enforcement   Weekly Report September 11, 2015 thru September 17, 2015 This report represents some events the FWC handled over the past week; however, it does not include all actions taken by the Division of Law Enforcement. Patrol, Protect, Preserve NORTHWEST REGION SANTA ROSA COUNTY Officer Hutchinson and Lieutenant Hahr completed an investigation involving the illegal take of deer in Illinois.  An officer with Illinois Department of Natural Resources (DNR) contacted FWC requesting assistance with a case in which a Florida hunter travelled to Illinois for the opening weekend of archery season.  The hunter purchased an antlerless only hunting license which is substantially cheaper than an either-sex license. He posted photos of himself posing with an 11‑point buck later on the opening morning.  The Illinois Conservation Officer requested that FWC locate and interview the subject regarding the deer. The officers located the subject and interviewed him.  The man admitted to taking the 11‑point buck, but was adamant that he purchased a license.  During the interview, the officers learned that he was accompanied by another man from this area.  The interview revealed that the subject also killed an 8-point buck and failed to tag it.  Neither of the subjects checked their bucks as required by Illinois law. During the interview, the subject told the officers that he did not know exactly where his buck was, but that he cleaned the skull and was going to make a European mount.  He told the officers that he would locate the antlers and his Illinois hunting license and show the officers the next day. The officers immediately went to the other subject’s home to interview him.  They located him and asked him about the trip.  He admitted to killing a doe deer and failing to check it as required, but denied taking a buck.  He confirmed that the other subject killed an 11‑point. During the first interview, the subject told the officers that he used a local taxidermist in the past.  The officers arrived at the taxidermy shop when it opened the next morning.  When they entered the shop, the 11‑point buck was mounted and hanging on the wall.  The shop owner stated that the subject dropped it off shortly after hunting in Illinois the previous year, but had not yet paid for it. He told them that the subject had sent him an email the night before telling him that he would be there to pick up his buck later in the week. The shop owner cooperated and provided evidence documenting where the buck came from.  The officers seized the buck and other evidence at the shop. The officers returned to meet with the first subject later that morning.  The subject then told the officers that his mother had actually bought him his license and that she was on her way to the bank to get proof of the transaction.  He again told the officers that he did not know where the buck was, but that he would turn it over as soon as he found it. The officers turned over the evidence and statements to the Illinois DNR. Summons for both subjects were issued and sent to FWC for delivery to the two subjects.  The subjects were charged with taking or possession of an antlered buck without an either-sex tag and failure to report harvest. Both subjects have mandatory court dates in Illinois. OKALOOSA COUNTY Officer Pifer was on land patrol conducting saltwater fisheries and license inspections at the Shalimar Bridge when he observed three individuals on the bridge, one of which was actively engaged in fishing.  Officer Pifer conducted a fisheries inspection of the cooler and determined that there was one Spanish mackerel, five gray/mangrove snapper and one unregulated fish inside.  Four of the five snapper were undersized. The individual was issued a citation for possession of undersized gray snapper. While returning from Panama City with vessel in tow, Officer Maltais was dispatched to a boating accident with a missing boater in Choctawhatchee Bay near Grass Lake.  Officer Maltais launched his vessel and proceeded to the scene of the accident.  Officer Maltais coordinated his efforts with the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office vessel units.  Further, Officer Maltais requested FWC Dispatch to call out additional officers to assist in the search and rescue.  Officers Molnar and Corbin responded to assist. The initial report from Dispatch stated that an unmanned vessel was circling in Choctawhatchee Bay.  The USCG vessel units had already begun a search pattern.  At approximately 0400, the missing boater was located and recovered.  Investigator Armstrong has been assigned to investigate the boating accident fatality. Officers White and Maltais taught the laws and ethics portion of a hunter safety course at the Okaloosa Correctional Institute to 39 student participants.

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