Game Warden Blotter
Two shooters: one lethal, one not
Tom Green County Game Warden Jason Huebner received a call from an individual who reported that he was photographing a red-tailed hawk when someone shot the hawk out of the tree it was sitting in. The caller also had good descriptions of the suspects and their vehicle, including its license plate number. Huebner located the suspect, and after a short interview received a written statement concerning the offense. Appropriate charges and restitution were filed on the shooter.
Feline mystery solved in warden’s neighborhood
A caller in Brazoria County Game Warden Joe Goff’s rural neighborhood reported a possible mountain lion sighting. Region IV game wardens have recently been involved in two big cat sightings and incidents, one involving a possible cougar or tiger killing some exotic wildlife in Harris County, which turned out to be the work of coyotes and a bobcat. The others were unconfirmed sightings of a tiger near Oyster Creek in Brazoria County. When Warden Goff went by the location to investigate, the resident had pictures she had taken of the “cougar.” The pictures confirmed that Morris the Cat (from TV commercial fame) is now residing in Brazoria County. The resident was relieved that it was only a large house cat, and thanked Goff for his assistance.
SPOTLIGHTER flees for a little while
Ward County Game Warden Chris Sanchez attempted to stop a possible spotlighter. The vehicle in question successfully fled after smashing through a locked gate and multiple fences. During the following days’ investigation by Sanchez and Ward County sheriff’s officers, the vehicle and a suspect were located. Evading arrest and other charges are pending.
SHOOTER injured by nearby source
An investigation of illegal hunting activities in Erath County recently concluded. Five individuals in one vehicle traveled the northern portion of Erath County shooting at varmints. The last shot did not end well. As the front passenger threw out a beer bottle, the individual directly behind his seat fired a 12-gauge shotgun. The individual throwing the bottle suffered an extensive injury. Somervell County Game Warden Joni Kuykendall and Hamilton County Game Warden Ronnie Yates investigated the incident. Cases pending.
Perps are eye witnesses, too
Jasper County Game Warden Morgan Inman received a call about an individual hunting deer during closed season. The caller said he was working on his roof and saw a man shoot at a deer, and the deer had run through his yard and into the woods. Inman and Game Warden Chris Fried both responded to the call. Upon arrival, they made contact with two men, who said they had also heard a shot and were looking for its source. Both men were interviewed, and one of them confessed to shooting at a deer and then hiding the gun at the other man’s house under his bed.
Darkly dressed pig poachers upset legal hunters
Members of the Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Wildlife Division staff called Brazoria County Game Wardens Joe Goff and Jason Richers to assist with a situation on the Nannie Stringfellow Wildlife Management Area near Brazoria. TPW was conducting a drawn public hunt for feral hogs on the WMA, and one of the permitted hunters reported seeing people shooting at a doe white-tailed deer. The reporting hunter was not only concerned with the obvious violation but also with the fact that the deer had been in a direct line between his blind and the violators when they allegedly shot. He said he was close enough to observe the shot hit some standing water by the deer. Goff and Richers located the three individuals (two adults and a child), who were trespassing on the WMA and admitted to shooting at a doe “just to scare her off.” The wardens explained the dangers of not being aware of what’s behind your target and wandering into a densely wooded area containing over 20 groups of hog hunters, who were all, and were expecting each other to be, wearing hunter orange. One of the adults and the youngster were dressed entirely in black and dark brown. After ensuring that the violators were safely off the WMA, the wardens issued citations for hunting without an Annual Public Hunting Permit and hunting without a valid hunting license.
Could have made up a better story
A caller to Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Operation Game Thief hotline reported seeing five individuals (three men and one child and one girl or someone with long hair) with two deer hung in the back of two different trucks being field dressed about 2 a.m. two days before the call. The caller said he told his boss and that his boss told him he would notify the local sheriff’s office. Howard County Game Warden Matt Woodall contacted Martin County Sheriff’s Office and found no report was made. Upon further investigation, the number the caller gave was not a working number. Woodall with the help of a local police officer found a cell phone number for the name given. After talking with the individual, Woodall learned the man never called OGT and had no idea of what was going on and said someone must have used his name. With the assistance of the Martin County sheriff and the voice recordings of the call, the sheriff gave Woodall a name of whom he thought it might be. Woodall and the sheriff found the individual and discussed the call. The man confessed to making up the whole story and that he was just bored and did not think he would get caught. He found an old sign in a shop that had the OGT number on it and thought it would be a good joke. His false OGT call turned into a false report to a peace officer. Case pending.
Dove taken by illegal means, by poachers, at wrong time of year
Travis County Game Warden Braxton Harris was patrolling around Walter E. Long Lake for fishermen when he saw a car parked near a heavily wooded area. While walking through the brush looking for people fishing on a remote part of the lake, he came across three men with pellet guns shooting dove out of cedar trees. They had no hunting licenses or hunter education. Cases pending.
Officers converge on suspected drunken road hunter
A report of road hunting near the national wildlife refuge in northeastern Cameron County came in to Game Warden Dan Waddell, but he was unable to immediately turn his truck around because he was hauling a boat and trailer. He asked the federal refuge officer to pull over a third vehicle because the driver failed to dim his headlamps within 500 feet of the oncoming warden’s vehicle. When Waddell arrived at the stop, he immediately noticed a strong odor of alcohol emanating from the driver. He conducted a field sobriety test and determined that the driver was extremely intoxicated. Waddell notified the Department of Public Safety, which dispatched a trooper, who arrested the driver.
Deal is a bust when law intervenes
Two antlerless deer were found near where a man was charged with hunting deer at night and hunting deer from a public roadway. Hardin County Game Wardens Mike Boone and Roy Eddins interviewed the man and learned he had a buyer lined up for the deer. The poacher was charged with two Class A misdemeanors.
News travels fast at the lake
Word came around that crappie were biting on Lake Leon, and Eastland County Game Warden Zach Havens went to see how it was going. A quick check at a fishing dock verified the fish were biting and resulted in five fishermen being landed by Havens. Three possessed undersized fish, and two did not have a fishing license.
Drug abuse, dog abuse intertwined in Hardeman County case
A resident called Hardeman County Game Warden Matt Thompson and said he was watching someone shoot at a dog with a pellet gun. Upon arrival a the shooter’s home, Thompson determined the man had abused the dog and was in possession of drug paraphernalia and several baggies of narcotics.
Game Warden Blotter
