U.S. hunters use duck hunting ruse to bag illegal quarry in Canada: ministry

REGINA — Several charges related to illegal hunting in Saskatchewan have been laid against two men from Missouri who were found guilty last month in one of that state’s largest deer-poaching cases.

The Ministry of Environment says in a release that David Berry Jr. and Cody Scott came to Saskatchewan in 2016 under the pretense of duck hunting, but illegally killed white-tailed deer, an antelope, a coyote and a badger in the Rosetown area instead.

If they return to Canada, both men face potential fines between them totalling $41,000, along with hunting suspensions.

In December, Scott, Berry Jr., Berry’s father and two brothers were convicted in Missouri of participating in a poaching ring that revolved around trophy bucks killed illegally for their heads, while the meat was left to waste.

Berry Jr. and Scott were handed financial penalties of more than U.S. $200,000, plus lifetime hunting suspensions in the state, but Berry was also given a one-year jail term and ordered to repeatedly watch the movie “Bambi” while behind bars.

Two Saskatchewan men charged with aiding and abetting the Missouri hunters, as well as wasting game, were fined $6,250 and suspended from hunting for one year.

The ministry statement said the American hunters killed a number of white-tailed deer during their trip to Saskatchewan, and that they took their illegal cargo back to the U.S.

Berry Jr. is facing eight charges under Saskatchewan’s Wildlife Act with potential fines in excess of $15,000. Scott is facing 14 charges and possible fines of close to $26,000.

The Saskatchewan men charged acted as drivers and assisted the poachers in storing and processing the illegally harvested wildlife. They also purchased a tag to help the Americans take the antlers across the border.

The ministry said the names of the Saskatchewan men have not been released because they voluntarily paid their fines and were not required to appear in court.

The Canadian Press