FORT FRANCES – The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry laid 31 charges and issued 16 warnings during a two-week enforcement blitz in Northwestern Ontario.
From November 1 to 15, 2016, conservation officers checked 308 resident and 153 non-resident hunters in and around Fort Frances and Rainy River for compliance with the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act and public safety laws.
Charges and warnings were issued for:
- possessing un-encased firearms at night
- discharging a firearm down a travelled roadway
- trespassing to hunt
- carrying loaded firearms in a vehicle
- failing to immediately attach a game seal to a deer
- hunting at night
- wasting flesh suitable for food
- failing to wear hunter orange
- failing to wear a proper helmet while on an all-terrain vehicle
- obstructing a conservation officer
- fishing without a licence
- having an over-limit of fish
Conservation officers also conducted inspections at border crossings in Fort Frances and Rainy River, which resulted in several charges and warnings for chronic wasting disease offences, including: possessing, for hunting purposes, a product containing bodily fluids from a member of the deer family; and failing to produce requested deer attractant products for inspection.
For further information on chronic wasting disease, please visit ontario.ca/cwd.
To report a natural resources violation, call the MNRF TIPS line at 1-877-847-7667 toll-free any time or contact your local ministry office during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
