2nd poaching case with illegal spotlighting under investigation in WA
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Officers investigate second spotlighting poaching incident in SE WA
- Earlier they identified suspects in spotlight poaching, other crimes near Dayton WA
- In both cases, all or much of the deer meat was wasted.
Washington state Fish and Wildlife police are investigating a second recent case of a poacher suspected of using a spotlight to illegally hunt deer at night in southeastern Washington.
In the latest case, a mule deer with five points on each side of its antlers was shot out-of-season last month in Walla Walla County near the Oregon state line, Fish and Wildlife announced recently.
The entire deer, including the meat, the head and the antlers, appeared to have been left in a farm field and then scavenged by animals.
Wildlife police believe that a spotlight was used to help kill the animal around Oct. 9. Shining a spotlight on game in the dark can cause them to freeze and make them easier to shoot.
Other information, including the exact location and the evidence collected, are being withheld during the investigation.
Under Washington state law, spotlighting is a gross misdemeanor punishable with a two-year suspension of hunting privileges. Spotlighting after a big game offense within the past 10 years is a felony and can lead to the suspension of all hunting privileges for a decade.
In the second recent case involving spotlighting, a trail camera helped identify two poaching suspects in Columbia County, Wash.
They face a long list of possible charges in addition to spotlighting big game, according to the Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife Police.
Those include trespassing, hunting big game out of season, wastage, improperly notched tag, hunting grouse out of season, hunting dove without a migratory bird permit, hunting turkey without tags, failing to tag turkey and big game, and driving under the influence.
The state agency has not released names because they have not yet been charged.
One of the suspects admitted to shooting a deer out of season with a rifle at night, according to Fish and Wildlife.
A trail camera had caught a photo of a Jeep Cherokee one of the suspects may have driven. When Fish and Wildlife police located a matching SUV at a county park campground outside of Dayton in September, the odor of a decaying carcass led them to a nearby field.
Much of the meat had been left to rot, according to officers.
Poaching violations can be reported by calling 911 for an incident in progress, calling 877-933-9847, sending an email to reportpoaching@dfw.wa.gov, filling out a report at bit.ly/4qoEvcw or sending a text tip to 847411 (TIP411) by entering WDFWTIP, followed by a space, and then entering your report.