GREAT FALLS — Two groups each contributed $1,000 in reward money for information leading to a conviction in cases in which three elk were killed illegally and left to waste in Musselshell County.
The Montana Chapter of the Backcountry Hunters and Anglers and the Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife each added to the $1,000 offered by Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks through its 1-800-TIP MONT program.
The first case involves two six-point bull elk that were killed around midnight on August 17 about 10 miles east of Roundup near U.S. Highway 12. Both were on private property and left to spoil.
On August 21, Hutzenbiler was called to the southwest corner of Musselshell County near Dean Creek Road and Goulding Creek Road where a six-point bull elk was shot and killed on private property and left to waste. The elk was killed during the night of August 20.
Anyone with information about the cases now is eligible for a reward of up to $3,000 by calling FWP game warden Randy Hutzenbiler at 406-694-2571 or FWP’s 24-hour crime-reporting line at 1-800-TIP-MONT (800-847-6668).
The 1-800-TIP-MONT program is a toll-free number where people can report violations of fish, wildlife or park regulations. Callers may remain anonymous.
The FWP website provides the following information about poaching:
Poaching is the illegal killing of fish or wildlife. It can include illegal killing of fish or wildlife:
- for commercial trade
- for ego gratification
- in closed areas, during closed times, or taking more than the law allows
Poachers:
- reduce recreational opportunities for law abiding anglers, hunters, wildlife watchers, and other outdoor enthusiasts
- kill and waste Montana game animals, threatened and endangered species, and even nongame animals
- target Montana’s fish and wildlife resource for personal profit
- Poaching robs law abiding hunters of game and fish, businesses and taxpayers of revenues generated by hunting, fishing, and wildlife viewing recreation, and it denies many other Montanans the ability to enjoy seeing healthy, mature fish and wildlife populations.
