Conservation Officer Fox and Lt. Ely responded to a call from Cape May County Refuge Officer Tricoulous. The Refuge Officer and his partner were watching an occupied duck blind from the roadway in their patrol vehicle, when a hunter shot at a passing flock of ducks and struck their patrol vehicle with two pellets. Interestingly, Lt. Ely had been there the previous season and spoken to the hunters about their responsibility not to shoot toward the road or an adjacent boat storage yard. He was assured that the hunters would never do that. Officer Fox issued the appropriate summonses.

While patrolling Six-day firearm deer season with Capt. Leonard, Conservation Officer Vazquez stopped a group of hunters. While Capt. Leonard spoke to the group, CO Vazquez looked in the back of the truck and spotted a tagged spike buck. The deer was tagged in an unrestricted zone, but because they were currently in an antler point restricted zone, CO Vazquez questioned the hunter. Initially, he said that he had shot it elsewhere and simply transported here for the next drive. Officer Vazquez knew better and in a short time, convinced the hunter to tell the truth. The deer was seized and donated to local homeless shelter. The appropriate summonses were issued.

Using information gathered during past investigations, Conservation Officer Vazquez entered the woods to look for deer hunters who were believed to be hunting without licenses. As he walked down the described set of power lines, he found the first hunter in a treestand without wearing any orange. He then continued down the power line, and eventually inspected four hunters, three of which were not wearing orange and did not have licenses. The family consisted of the grandfather, father and his two sons. One was a juvenile, but the adults were charged appropriately.

Conservation Officer Fox made a case that will involve the use of DNA testing in East Vineland, Cumberland County. An unidentified hunter was witnessed by another hunter field dressing a spike buck in an antler point restricted zone. The investigation led CO Fox to a local gun club in Atlantic County where a spike buck was checked in on the same day. When questioned, the hunter said he shot the deer in another, unrestricted zone. The hunter accompanied CO Fox and Lt. Ely to the place where he said he shot the spike. Despite efforts to locate the gut pile or any physical evidence that the spike had been shot there, nothing was found. The area that the hunter said that he had shot the deer in seemed random and the hunter’s story was vague. Officer Fox retrieved samples from the gut pile in the restricted zone as well as a sample from the spike at the gun club and they will be tested for a match. The gut pile in question was found 30 yards from the suspect’s treestand and a 3 ½ inch 12 gauge shell was found underneath; the same size and gauge that the suspect was shooting. If the DNA samples match, the suspect will be charged with tagging and harvest violations.

Conservation Officer Vazquez just disposed of a deer case from archery season in which the hunter harvested a buck without first harvesting an antlerless deer in Hamilton Township, Atlantic County. The hunter checked in both a doe and a buck in the same day. He claimed that he had shot the doe the night before but when he found it the next day, it had spoiled so he left it in the woods but went to the check station and reported it. The check station issued him a supplemental tag anyway and he then checked the 8 pt. buck that evening. Because he had not tagged the doe nor transported it to the check station, he was charged with illegally harvesting a buck in addition to the tagging violations associated with the doe. CO Vazquez did not believe that a doe had been taken at all. The gun club and its property are in a closed zone so it is believed that the buck was harvested there and merely tagged in an open zone. After discussion with the suspect’s attorney, who is also a club member, the hunter pled guilty to the charges.

Conservation Officer Vazquez had information that waterfowl hunters may be trespassing on Willow Grove Lake, Salem County. He setup surveillance on the lake one evening and observed two waterfowl hunters. After their last shots at waterfowl (27 minutes past legal hunting hours), CO Vazquez approached them. Upon inspection, he discovered that along with the trespassing violations, one of the hunters was unlicensed, both had hunted well past legal hours and one had fired towards a house. The appropriate summonses were issued.

Conservation Officer Kille responded to a complaint of duck hunters trespassing on private property in Oldmans Township, Salem County. Upon arrival CO Kille observed three hunters in a small boat, the operator of which was navigating through a small tributary of Oldmans Creek with a shotgun slung over his shoulder. CO Kille sat and observed the hunters believing that they were attempting to jump shoot waterfowl. The opportunity never presented itself and the CO eventually inspected the hunters. Upon inspection the CO discovered that the operator of the vessel did in fact have a loaded shotgun while traversing the waterway, but insisted he wouldn’t have shot. Multiple summonses were issued including not having a federal waterfowl stamp, no boat operator’s license, no boat registration, and no PFDs.

Conservation Officer Kille received information from a concerned hunter in Logan Township, Gloucester County of a man trespassing on private property. The hunter explained that the suspect had observed a possible record book deer on this property and was going through great lengths to harvest it. The suspect was utilizing a canoe to travel ½ mile down the Delaware River to access the posted property so as not to be caught trespassing. CO Kille discovered where the suspect had set up a ground blind and was periodically checking the seat. Shortly after receiving the information and discovering the ground blind, the suspect ironically called the CO. The suspect asked CO Kille to assist him in obtaining permission to hunt the property from the owner of the land that he had already been trespassing upon. The CO informed the man that he couldn’t be of any assistance and provided a friendly reminder that he was not to hunt there without first obtaining permission. Four days after the conversation CO’s Kille and James apprehended the man hunting on that property and issued the man summonses for defiant trespass and trespass for the purpose of hunting. The man’s gun was seized as evidence.

Conservation Officer Kille investigated a couple of trappers that had set their muskrat traps in Mantua Creek in Paulsboro, Gloucester County. The CO obtained information from a confidential informant that the trappers were in possession of stolen traps. The CO discovered their traps and determined that they were not being tended every 24 hours, however, wasn’t able to determine if they were stolen. After conducting surveillance for two days during the low tides the CO finally apprehended the trappers. The trappers initially told the CO that they in fact tended their traps at 1 a.m. that morning. The trappers were informed that the CO had the ability to monitor surveillance recordings from cameras that were in close proximity. The trappers then confessed that they hadn’t checked their traps in two days. Sixty-five conibear traps were seized as evidence and summonses were issued for untagged traps, not tending every 24 hours, trespass and interference.

Conservation Officer Kille apprehended a habitual violator in Logan Township, Gloucester County during muzzleloader season. The Paulsboro man who had been previously convicted of both turkey and deer act violations will now be revoked upon conviction of his current violations. The CO was informed that the man had his father drop him off on private property and while trespassing had harvested a deer. A week later a lengthy interview was conducted and the man admitted that after being dropped off he had shot a deer with his muzzleloader. Additionally, it was determined that he wasn’t wearing orange and failed to tag and check in the deer. The man’s gun was seized as evidence and the appropriate summonses were issued.

Conservation Officer Kille was supplied information from a confidential informant who stated that a man had been shooting deer with a crossbow from within his motor vehicle in West Deptford Township, Gloucester County. The CO ascertained who was responsible and conducted an interview with the hunter. A written confession was obtained where the man admitted to having shot and killed a deer on Sunoco refinery property. He also noted that he shot from the road with a crossbow and without an extended bow permit. The hunter stated that he tracked the deer and discovered it dead, but only retrieved his crossbow bolt and left the deer in the woods. His crossbow was seized as evidence and he was charged with having a loaded weapon within 450’ of a residence, discharging across a roadway, hunting without a valid permit, trespass and failure to tag and check a deer.

Conservation Officer Kille was called by South Harrison Police Department, Gloucester County one evening requesting his assistance with a couple of hunters they suspected of being intoxicated and in possession of a gun. The CO responded and the officers collectively determined that the man who had just harvested a deer was in fact severely impaired. An open container of an alcoholic beverage was discovered within his truck in addition to an uncased gun. The hunter’s firearm was seized as evidence and he was charged with having an open container in a motor vehicle, an uncased gun in a motor vehicle and gunning under the influence.

During the six day firearm deer season, Conservation Officer Stites received detailed information from a witness of illegal road hunting in Upper Pittsgrove Township, Salem County. CO’s Stites and Kille interviewed the suspected road hunters and they denied any wrong doing. The illegal hunter was charged with interference with the duties of a Conservation Officer, trespass for the purpose of hunting, possessing an uncased firearm in a motor vehicle, possessing a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle, shooting from a roadway, hunting with the aid of a motor vehicle and possessing a loaded firearm within 450’ of a residence.

Conservation Officer Toppin and Lt. Risher were on patrol on the opening day of the six day firearm deer season in the Winslow Wildlife Management Area in Camden County when they encountered a deer club at the end of the day leaving the management area. Upon inspection of the deer contained in one of the vehicles, it was determined that two of the three deer did not possess a deer transportation tags. The hunters responsible for harvesting the deer were in another vehicle leaving the area and returned a short time later. CO Toppin issued the appropriate summonses for untagged deer.

Conservation Officer Toppin was investigating past complaints of illegal deer hunting in the Pine Hill and Clementon areas of Camden County when he conducted a foot patrol of an area and discovered a dead deer with the antlers removed. He located a nearby hunter and conducted an inspection. It was determined that this hunter had hunted the same property in which he located the dead deer with the antlers removed. During an interview the hunter confessed to tagging the deer for his grandson because the he was hunting without a valid archery license. The appropriate summonses were issued.

Conservation Officer Toppin received a trespass complaint about deer hunters illegally hunting property in Cherry Hill Township, Camden County. The deer hunters were apprehended by the leasee who called CO Toppin. The Officer talked with one trespasser on the complainant’s cell phone and told him to stay at his location. Despite the advice all the illegal hunters left the scene, but not before the complainant photographed their vehicle’s license plate. The next day CO Toppin and Lt. Risher followed-up with interviews and received a full confession of the events the day before. The hunters were charged with trespass for the purpose of hunting, fail to properly tag two deer, failing to exhibit a license upon request and interference of the duties of a Conservation Officer.

Lieutenant Risher responded to an illegal hunting complaint in Newfield Borough, Gloucester County at 12:30a.m. The Police Department apprehended an individual illegally hunting deer at night with a bow and arrow. The hunter was under the influence of alcohol when attempting to shoot deer in the Mayor’s yard. During the field interview the hunter admitted to hunting deer at night in the past. He was charged with hunting deer during the closed season, hunting deer without a valid archery license and without a valid deer permit.