Marquette, MI – Michigan Department of Natural Resources conservation officers have determined an apparent moose poaching case reported in Marquette County in October 2011 was in fact a hoax, the DNR announced today.
DNR officers, with assistance from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officers, investigated the case and were able to determine that a severed moose head, left in an area by the corner of County Road CF and East Road near Helen Lake in southern Humbolt Township, came from a moose legally harvested in and imported from Canada.
During the investigation, officers learned that upon returning to Michigan , the successful hunter had brought the moose to a local Negaunee-area meat processor. The hunter retrieved the meat and antlers from the processor, but left the rest of the carcass, including the head, for proper disposal by the processor.
At some point, the head was diverted from proper disposal and used in an apparent attempt to imply a moose poaching had taken place in the Upper Peninsula . The moose head was displayed on a rock with a sign leaning against it that read “Wolf’s (sic) won’t get this one!”
“While the outcome of this case is positive, in the sense that a moose poaching did not take place, it is also disheartening that someone chose to express themselves in this manner, which resulted in a waste of public resources, through the time and expense involved in investigating and closing this case,” said DNR Lt. Timothy Robson.
While the hunter who legally harvested and imported the moose has been cleared in the case, additional information or tips regarding the hoax poaching case could lead to criminal charges. Anyone with information about this, or any natural resources violation, can call the DNR’s Report All Poaching (RAP) Line 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 800-292-7800, or contact Lt. Robson at the DNR’s Marquette office at 906-228-6561. Information can be left confidentially, and often monetary rewards are offered for information that leads to the arrest of violators.
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