Two Kalispell men were fined and lost their hunting privileges for 10 years after being sentenced for poaching 10 white-tailed deer in Kalispell in 2013.
Levi Anderson and Hadyn Johnson were sentenced in Flathead County Justice Court recently for illegally killing deer in the Farm to Market area north of Kalispell in December 2013, according to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
The deer were shot at night, after the general season had ended and left to waste.
Anderson pleaded guilty and was fined $4,350, ordered to pay $600 in restitution and lost his privileges to hunt, fish and trap in Montana and 44 states in the Interstate Wildlife Violators Compact (IWVC) for 10 years.
Johnson also pleaded guilty and was fined $2,100, ordered to pay $2,100 in restitution and lost his hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for 20 years in Montana and all states in the IWVC.
Wardens investigated several antlerless white-tailed deer shot and left to waste in the Farm-to-Market area in December after the general hunting season had ended. On Dec. 20, 2013, at approximately 10:30 p.m., game wardens Wes Oedekoven and Chris Crane made an investigative stop after hearing shots fired from a vehicle driven by Anderson and Johnson in the area where the deer had been poached.
According to FWP, Johnson had an active felony arrest warrant for $50,000 from Oregon and was arrested and turned over to the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office. Anderson was cooperative and gave wardens a detailed account of their illegal activities and took wardens back to the kill sites of one deer shot that night and nine other deer they had shot previously.
FWP Warden Captain Lee Anderson praised wardens Oedekoven and Crane for their hard work on this case, noting that the reason this case came to fruition was the dedication of these two game wardens.
“It is disturbing that a culture still exists that engages in this type of destructive behavior on Montana’s wildlife,” said Warden Captain Anderson. “These animals were taken from the people of Montana and left to waste. “
Poaching activity remains a persistent issue, though, as FWP pointed out this week. Illegal poaching incidents have been reported in the Farm-to-Market, Kila, Somers, and Marion areas.
“We as a community need to come together and work with one another to keep this from continuing to happen; and if it does, take the steps necessary to get the information to the local wardens so they can investigate and solve these cases,” Crane said.
Anyone with information that may help solve poaching incidents is encouraged to call 1-800-TIP-MONT or the local sheriff’s office.