Hunters fined for violations

News Release
MNR

Two Ontario hunters have been fined a total of $3,000 for hunting moose from their motor boat.
Gerald Woolsey, 64, of Ear Falls, and Tyson Woolsey, 31, of Kenora, were each fined $1,500 for shooting a bull moose from a motor boat. Both are prohibited from hunting in Ontario for one year.
The moose was forfeited to the Crown and subsequently donated to the Red Lake Homeless Shelter. One firearm seized during the investigation will be returned once all fines are paid.
Court heard that on October 11, 2008, Gerald Woolsey drove his boat into a bay on the Chukuni River, west of Ear Falls, to an area where hunters on shore were calling a bull moose. Tyson Woolsey then shot at the moose from the boat.
Justice of the Peace Daisy Hoppe heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Dryden, on February 17, 2009.
The ministry reminds hunters that it is unlawful to have a loaded gun in a motor boat or to shoot moose from a motor boat.
Three Mine Centre residents have been ordered to pay fines totalling $6,400 following two incidents of illegal hunting.
Byron Burkholder, 25, and Ewan Burkholder, 22, were each fined $700 for illegally hunting a cow moose. The moose was killed in the Atikokan area on October 18, 2008. Both men have had their hunting licences suspended for one year and must complete a hunter safety course before their licences will be returned.
In a separate incident, conservation officers discovered Byron Burkholder and Norman Burkholder, 48, on Barber Road in the Rainy River District on December 13, 2008. Both men were fined $500 for illegally having a firearm at night and $1,500 for hunting at night. Byron Burkholder was also fined $1,000 for having a loaded firearm in his vehicle.
Byron Burkholder received a three-year suspension of his hunting licence for the December offence, increasing his total suspension for the two offences to four years. Norman Burkholder received a two-year suspension of his hunting licence.
Justice of the Peace Pat Clysdale-Cornell heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Fort Frances, on February 27, 2009.
An Atikokan resident was convicted of hunting offences and fined a total of $1,865.
Eric Zacharias, 28, was fined $1,250 for unlawfully hunting deer and $615 for unlawfully transporting deer.
On December 13, 2008, while on patrol in Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) 12B near Crilly Road, conservation officers heard two shots from a high-powered rifle. Officers stopped two Atikokan residents coming out of Crilly Road. Upon inspection of the vehicle, the officer saw a small antlerless deer in the box of the truck. The driver of the truck possessed a buck-only deer licence and an antlerless deer tag for WMU 11A.

Justice of the Peace Pat Clysdale-Cornell heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Atikokan, on February 26, 2009.
To report a natural resource violation, call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll-free any time or contact your ministry office during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).