June 06, 2018
By Game & Fish Online Staff
Photo by Chase Fountain/@Texas Parks and Wildlife
These game warden stories include bass tournament cheating, antler violations, striper poaching.
A Texas man is facing fraud charges for allegedly cheating in a kayak bass tournament earlier this spring on Decker Lake.
In its latest Game Warden Field Notes , Texas Parks & Wildlife shared a story of the investigation, with the conclusion the suspect use a cut tail of a bass to make his catches look bigger in the catch-and-release tournament, which relies on angler honesty to determine the winner. Anglers take photos of their fish on a measuring board; the angler with the most inches wins.
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"Upon inspection of the violators vessel, a cut tail of a bass was found in the paddle well of the kayak," the agency said in the Field Notes. "The violator initially stated he found the cut tail in the reeds and was taking it to shore to turn it in. Later, the violator confirmed to have used the tail to place over another bass, using his hand to cover the questionable area, to make the fish look longer on multiple occasions."
The suspect was charged with fraud in a fishing tournament and possession of marijuana. He was booked in the Travis County jail on April 14 and released the same day, according to Travis County Sheriff's Office data . He was scheduled to appear in court last week.
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WYOMING
Illegal Shed Hunting Charges Filed There's an antler-hunting season in western Wyoming (May 1-Dec. 31 on all public lands west of the Continental Divide), but some folks couldn't wait.
According to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department , Pinedale game wardens Jordan Kraft and Bubba Haley and Big Piney game warden Adam Hymas caught a combined 10 antler hunters in the weeks leading up to the season-opener.
"There are still court appearances pending for two individuals, but thus far sentences have totaled $4100 in fines and seven years of lost hunting privileges," the agency said.
The confiscated antlers will be returned to the field.
NEW YORK
Tide Reveals Striper Poaching New York officers had a little help from the receding tide to catch alleged poachers fishing from the shoreline of Long Island Sound.
According to a news release, officers noticed several under-sized striped bass on stringers near five anglers, who had the fish in deeper water until the tide rolled out and revealed the illegal fish.
Four tickets were issued for possessing short striped bass and fishing without a marine registry.
