Kalispell men sentenced for poaching deer on Farm to Market
Two Kalispell men have been sentenced for illegally killing 10 whitetail deer in the Farm to Market Road area last winter. The deer were shot at night, out of season, and left to waste.
Levi Anderson, 21, and Hadyn Johnson, 21, were sentenced in Flathead County Justice Court.
Anderson pleaded guilty and was fined $4,350 and ordered to pay $600 in restitution. He lost his privileges to hunt, fish and trap in Montana and 44 states in the Interstate Wildlife Violators Compact for 10 years.
Johnson also pleaded guilty and was fined $2,100 and ordered to pay $2,100 in restitution. He lost his hunting, fishing, and trapping privileges for 20 years in Montana and all states in the IWVC.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks wardens investigated several antlerless whitetail deer shot and left to waste in the Farm to Market area in December after the general hunting season had ended.
On Dec. 20, 2013, at approximately 10:30 p.m., wardens Wes Oedekoven and Chris Crane made an investigative stop after hearing shots fired from a vehicle driven by Anderson and Johnson in the area where the deer had been poached.
Johnson had an active felony arrest warrant for $50,000 from Oregon and was arrested and turned over to the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office.
Anderson was cooperative and gave wardens a detailed account of their illegal activities and took wardens back to the kill sites of one deer shot that night and nine other deer they had shot previously.
“It is disturbing that a culture still exists that engages in this type of destructive behavior on Montana’s wildlife,” says FWP Warden Captain Lee Anderson. “These animals were taken from the people of Montana and left to waste. “
Last week, FWP put out a notice seeking information about a separate poaching case where multiple deer were illegally shot at night and left to waste along Farm to Market Road and near Kila, Somers and Marion.
“We as a community need to come together and work with one another to keep this from continuing to happen, and if it does, take the steps necessary to get the information to the local wardens so they can investigate and solve these cases,” Crane said.
Anyone with information on the recent poaching cases is urged to call 1-800-TIPMONT.