Although the Cook County News-Herald knows that the majority of sportsmen and women are law-abiding folks, there are a few that run afoul of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Conservation Officers. Periodically, the DNR provides a report of some of the miscreants the Conservation Officers (CO) have encountered. The News-Herald shares these stories as a reminder to all to be safe and to follow the rules!
CO Thomas Wahlstrom (Grand Marais) spent the past week checking anglers, small-game hunters and waterfowl hunters. He patrolled in the BWCAW with the U.S. Forest Service. Enforcement action was taken for ATV and hunting violations.
CO Mary Manning (Hovland) continued to work bear hunters, checking abandoned stations and following up on registration issues. Grouse hunters were also worked. The majority of them were driving forest roads on ATVs and happy with the bird numbers. Manning checked a few duck hunters on opening weekend as well.
CO Kylan Hill (Tofte) reports fall colors and high grouse numbers brought all kinds of people up the North Shore during the week. Hill checked multiple groups of hunters with bags full of grouse. One party was cited for agricultural trespass after an investigation determined the hunter illegally shot a grouse out of a cow pasture. Even though the Arrowhead is full of public land, private land still exists and it needs to be respected. Hill did a work detail on the Rainy River, Lake Kabetogama, and Namakan Lake. Lack of PFDs, registration, and no license in possession violations were handled. Hill cited a party for illegally and intentionally snagging pink salmon. Lots of fish are running in the tributaries, making them very vulnerable to anglers with ill intentions.
CO Jim Guida (Brainerd) worked a busy waterfowl opener over the weekend. Violations detected included no federal stamp, unsigned federal stamp, unplugged gun, no HIP certification, no license in possession and insufficient number of PFDs. Guida worked with another CO and addressed numerous waterfowl and an extra-line angling violation. One two-person group was checked and displayed immediate remorse for an admitted over-limit of wood ducks. The hunters were relieved and just “ducky” when the officer team advised them that their ducks were actually six green- and blue-winged teal. Guida also received requests for permits for a road-killed bobcat and mink.
CO Todd VanderWeyst (Paynesville) found a large number of people out using the resources. He stayed extremely busy with waterfowl-hunting activity. VanderWeyst handled many nuisance-animal calls, ranging from distempered raccoons to turkeys attempting to get into a local discount store. Apparently, they wanted to beat the after-Thanksgiving crowds, or perhaps they had a premonition they may be unavailable then.
CO Keith Bertram (Long Prairie) found most duck hunters on opening weekend with a bird or two. Teal and wood ducks were the most common in the bag. Enforcement action was taken for license violations, unplugged guns, and early shooting. A call of a fawn deer wearing an orange collar was also taken.
CO Tom Hemker (Winona) reports a good waterfowl opener with very high hunter numbers, as hunters reported more than a dozen units at one access at 1 a.m. A group of waterfowl hunters made an unsafe shot that resulted in some property damage to a home, along with a person being hit by shot while sitting on her screened porch. A bear was reported harvested in Winona County. Hemker also assisted Wisconsin wardens with an illegal fishing case where illegal equipment was used and possibly protected fish were taken.
CO Don Bozovsky (Hibbing) worked the waterfowl opener, the ongoing small-game and archery deer seasons, anglers and ATV riders. Duck hunters did very well, with most everyone bagging birds. Some limits of mallards were seen. It was the best harvest of ducks seen taken during Bozovsky’s time in the station. Two duck hunters were observed having a breakfast of beer in the boat, in the early morning hours. Guns and alcohol, in a boat with no PFDs and an unplugged gun were dealt with. Three ATVs and an OHM were found trespassing on a non-motorized trail, all within about a half-hour. Enforcement action was taken for an unplugged gun, no state duck stamp, federal duck stamp violations, no PFDs, illegal-length fish, and a number of OHV trespass and ATV violations.
CO Shane Zavodnik (Cook) assisted the sheriff ’s office with an individual who was stopped for a traffic violation. Along with several traffic violations, he was transporting a large number of spruce tops without a permit in possession. When the operator was advised he would be getting his vehicle towed, he proceeded to deflate all of his tires and disassemble the light assemblies on his vehicle. The subject was cited for multiple violations and 1,000 spruce tops were also seized during the stop. Other violations encountered over the weekend included hunting without a state migratory stamp, insufficient number of PFDs onboard a watercraft and hunting over motorized decoys.
CO Nicholas Prachar (Blackduck North) made the “Red Fox Drug Bust” while working a waterfowl complaint. Prachar stopped to investigate a dead red fox next to a vehicle along a dirt road. During his questioning, Prachar learned the driver’s license was cancelled inimical to public safety, which is a gross misdemeanor. Further investigation led to the seizure of both methamphetamine and heroin. The driver was arrested and is charged with multiple felony counts and a gross misdemeanor. Other enforcement action was taken on multiple ATV violations and time was spent working small-game and waterfowl-hunting activity.
Leave a Reply