SIOUX LOOKOUT – Five Ontario men received hefty fines adding up to $12,000 along with hunting suspensions after pleading guilty to various hunting offences.
Ken Duncanson of Silverwater was fined $4,000 and received a four-year suspension of his hunting licence for illegally shooting an adult bull and an adult cow moose. He was fined another $1,000 for abandoning the cow moose and allowing it to go to waste.
Eric Wismer of Algoma Mills was fined $1,500 and received a two-year suspension of his hunting licence for possessing the illegally killed bull moose. He was also fined $1,000 for allowing the cow moose to go to waste.
The court heard that on October 23, 2008, Wismer and Duncanson were hunting in the Webfoot Road area near Sioux Lookout. The pair shot and killed two adult moose, neither of which they were licensed to hunt. The bull moose was eventually removed from the bush using a tag from another person, but the cow moose was left to spoil.
Ministry of Natural Resources conservation officers were able to find and charge the offenders by using DNA evidence, as well as evidence located by the ministry’s canine unit.
Justice of the Peace Edith Baas heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Sioux Lookout, on May 20, 2010.
In an earlier court appearance, other members of the same hunting party pleaded guilty to possessing the illegally killed bull moose. Brian Dittmar and Travis Orford of Gore Bay, and Mike Zultek of Little Current were fined $1,000 each for the offence. Orford was fined another $1,500 for illegally attaching his tag to a moose shot by another person.
Justice of the Peace Lori-Ann Toulouse accepted their plea in the Ontario Court of Justice, Sudbury, on March 11, 2010.
To report a natural resources violation, call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll-free any time or contact your local ministry officer during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477)