Out-of-state turkey poachers nabbed by the Oklahoma game wardens.
Four people are facing 26 different violations in Roger Mills County Oklahoma after they allegedly trespassing and poaching turkeys near Reydon.
The Oklahoma Game Wardens posted about the incident, which happened on April 9, on their ever-popular Facebook page. The case started after a landowner heard two gunshots. Believing they were from his property, he rushed to the scene as a pickup was speeding away. However, the landowner did manage to catch a photo of the vehicle as it fled.
From there, Warden Tucker Blackburn was called in to investigate. He collected evidence in the form of shotgun shells, turkey feathers and blood that were found on the county road running next to the landowner's property.
The Warden's post states that a possible suspect was identified the following day by Warden Lt. James Edwards Jr. Working with the additional assistance of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Chief Vic Coffman, the suspect was contacted by the USFW official. Coffman advised the suspected poacher to turn himself in to Warden Blackburn. From there an amazing bit of coincidence led to the end of the goose chase for these alleged turkey poachers.
"After several minutes without a phone call from the suspect, Warden Blackburn was contacted by Roger Mills County Deputy Joey Bales regarding the suspect vehicle driving in Cheyenne, OK. Warden Blackburn was in Cheyenne at the time and hurried his patrol truck to catch up to the suspect," the post reads. "As he ran to his truck, the suspect vehicle drove past him. Warden Blackburn was attempting to catch up to the suspect vehicle when his cell phone rang, and he noticed the number was a from a non-resident caller. Warden Blackburn realized it was the suspect and he instructed the caller to pull over, which he did."
It turns out there were four men in the vehicle and with the assistance of other law enforcement, multiple pieces of evidence were seized. This included the parts from nine turkeys and at least one shotgun from the photos they posted. Blackburn cited the men for 26 violations in total including shooting from a public roadway, unlawful possession of wildlife, removal of evidence of sex prior to check in, failure to check in wildlife, hunting with aid of a motor vehicle and hunting without a landowner's permission.
The wardens didn't state where the suspects were from, but all four men in the vehicle were cited. There were 26 violations that total $12,014 in court costs and fines.
The Wardens closed out their post by thanking the landowner who originally reported the case and Vic Coffman for his assistance.
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NEXT: FEEDING THE OBSESSION: AN OKLAHOMA TURKEY HUNT WITH MOSSY OAK
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