Wyoming's Sublette County Sheriff's Office said on Wednesday that it is actively investigating the incident in which a local man injured and allegedly tortured a wolf before killing it.
In a statement, Sgt. Travis Bingham, the Sublette Sheriff's public information officer, said that they were not aware of the incident until it went viral and were "inundated with thousands of calls and emails about the situation from all over the world."
During the Feb. 29 incident, Cody Roberts, of Daniel, Wyoming, injured a juvenile wolf by running it down with a snowmobile, muzzled it with tape, brought it to his home and a bar, and posed for photos with it before killing it.
Bingham added that they "understand the outrage" but called threats of violence against Roberts or his family "not appropriate."
Although Roberts has not released a public statement, a relative of his, Jeanne Ivie-Roberts, wrote on social media "I love and support you Cody" and shared an image of herself with her mouth taped while holding a dead wolf. Very few others have defended his actions.
According to court records, the Wyoming Game & Fish Department cited Roberts for illegally possessing a live wolf. However, the department later said officers could not charge him beyond the $250 ticket because his actions did not violate state law.
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The incident, first reported by Cowboy State Daily, garnered widespread condemnation from public and private figures alike. While the Wyoming governor and other public figures called it "absolutely unacceptable," they didn't say that Roberts should be charged further or offer to update state law.
Wolf advocates have long been critical of Wyoming's wildlife policies and say they likely had a role in the incident. Under state law, wolves can be killed in designated "predator zones" for any reason and by any means. They're also specifically exempt from the state's animal cruelty statute. In other words, wolf torture is not against the law.
Wildlife groups say Wyoming and other western states like Montana and Idaho have been hostile toward wolves since the federal government lifted protections for them in 2020.
