2009 News

• Enforcement Initiatives Lead to Charges (December 29, 2009) 
• $6,000 Fine For Commercial Fishing Violations (December 22, 2009)
• $2,400 Fine For Obstructing A Conservation Officer (December 22, 2009) 
• Failing To Comply With Court Order Lands Barrie Angler In Jail (December 21, 2009) 
• Cobourg Man Convicted of Numerous Hunting Offences (December 16, 2009)
• $3,600 in Fines for Night Hunting (December 10, 2009) 
• $8,000 Fine For Illegal Possession Of Protected Wildlife (December 11, 2009) 
• Fines of $8,500 for Illegal Aggregate Pits and Road Construction (December 10, 2009)
• Sturgeon Falls Resident Fined $2,500 for Abandoning Bull Moose (December 4, 2009) 
• Over Fishing Proves Costly with fines of $6,250 (November 30, 2009)
• Habitat Destruction Nets $10,000 Fine And Rehabilitation Order (December 1, 2009) 
• Fined $4,000 For Altering Creek Bank (November 30, 2009)
• $2,000 Fine For Moose Hunting Violations (November 27, 2009) 
• Unlawful Importation Proves Costly For Commercial Baitfish Operator (November 12, 2009)
• Man Nabbed For Over-Limit Of Walleye On Lake Of The Woods (November 26, 2009)
• Fined $4,750 for Moose Shot During Closed Season (November 26, 2009)
• Hunting From A Vehicle Proves Costly (November 26, 2009)
• Illegal Bear Guiding Results in Lifetime Ban (November 25, 2009)
• $11,000 Fine For Commercial Fishing Violations (November 18, 2009)
• Illegal Bear Guiding Results in Lifetime Ban (November 23, 2009)
• Fined for Failure to Report Acquisition of Wildlife Parts (November 13, 2009)
• Failure To Appear Proves Costly (November 3, 2009)
• Hefty Charges For Stockpiling Walleye (November 3, 2009)
• $4,500 Fine For Possessing Live Invasive Fish in Toronto (October 21, 2009) 
• Illegal Bear Guiding Results In Fine And Lifetime Suspensions (October 5, 2009) 
• Jail Time For Illegal Deer Hunting (October 30, 2009)  
• Leamington Man Fined $3500 For Poaching Deer At Night (October 15, 2009)
• Unlawful Removal of Crown Forest Resources Results in $5,000 Fine (October 6, 2009) 
• Shooting Canada Goose With A Rifle On Stony Lake Proves Costly (October 9, 2009)
• Fines For Careless Hunting And Illegally Exporting Deer (September 21, 2009)
• Aggregate Operations Fined $30,000 For Violations (September 14, 2009)
• Poaching Offender Nets 150 Days In Jail (September 14, 2009)
• Jim McMullen of Parry Sound has been named the Ontario Conservation Officer of the Year for 2009. (August 14, 2009)
• Unauthorized Trail Work In Conservation Reserve Costs Resident $5,000 (August 13, 2009) 
• Michigan Anglers Fined $7,200 for Possessing Too Many Walleyes (September 2, 2009) 
• $4,500 In Fines For Illegal Lake Simcoe Herring And Perch (July 23, 2009)
• Anglers Charged For Fishing In Fish Sanctuary During Closed Season (July 22, 2009)
• Conservation Officers Uncover Violations By Anglers During Enforcement Blitz (July 22, 2009)
• $7,500 In Illegal Deer Hunting Fines (July 22, 2009) 
• Hunters Fined $6,000 For Unlawfully Hunting With Invalid Moose Tag (July 22, 2009)
• Tourist Outfitter Fined $6,500 For Illegally Lodging Guests On Crown Land (July 22, 2009)
• Illegal Bear Guiding Results in Two-Year Ban on Providing Services and $14,000 Fine (July 14, 2009)
• Heavy Fine For Big Muskie Catch (July 13, 2009 )
• 16-Month Undercover Operation Leads To High Penalties (July 9, 2009)
• Jail Time and Fines for Pair Caught Illegally Hunting Moose in Algonquin Park (July 7, 2009 )
• Fines at Remote Tourism Outpost Camps Chapleau Crown Game Preserve (July 4,5 2009)
• Detroit river fisheries patrols results in 122 charges (June 29, 2009)
• Multi-agency road check finds most anglers obeying rules (June 15, 2009)
• Illegal Trade In Ontario Species At Risk Results In $4,000 Fine (June 9, 2009)
• Bancroft area hunt camp members fined $30,000 for moose poaching (June 08, 2009)
• 65 Charges in Fishing Enforcement Blitz (February 17, 2009)

November 20, 2009
Enforcement Blitz in Northeast Leads to Charges and Animal Seizures

Ministry of Natural Resources conservation officers laid over 200 charges and seized illegally hunted animals, including 23 moose during an enforcement blitz in the northeast.

The targeted area extended from the Hudson Bay and James Bay coasts in the north, to the French and Mattawa rivers in the south, and from the Ontario-Quebec border in the east to Lake Superior and Manitouwadge in the west. Areas that provided data were Chapleau, Cochrane, Hearst, Kirkland Lake, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins and Wawa.

From October 11 to 25, 2009, conservation officers checked over 2,800 hunters and uncovered 409 violations leading to 217 charges and 192 warnings.  The blitz coincided with the opening of the regular gun season for moose in much of the northeast region.

Charges were laid for a range of offences, including:

• having loaded firearms in vehicles and boats
• unlawful possession of firearms at night
• hunting without a licence
• trespassing to hunt
• hunting without validation tags and unlawful hunting of moose
• careless hunting
   

Special emphasis was placed on regulations pertaining to safe hunting practices and regulations requiring hunters to wear hunter orange. Some hunters were found wearing an inadequate amount of orange or none at all. In addition, hunters were found to have loaded firearms in motor vehicles or discharged firearms from a motor vehicle, which is a safety concern. Incidents of using a firearm at night were also reported from field officers.

April 23, 2009
ENFORCEMENT BLITZ IN HURON COUNTY SANCTUARIES

The Ministry of Natural Resources laid charges during enforcement patrols in Huron County over the April 17-19 weekend. The blitz focused on unlawful angling activity in sanctuaries.  The areas targeted were the Nine Mile River in Port Albert, the Bayfield River in Bayfield and the Maitland River at Falls Reserve Conservation Authority.

Conservation officers contacted 21 people, laid 10 charges and issued one warning.

The violations included:

• Unlawfully fishing in a sanctuary
• Unlawfully angling with more than one fishing line
• Failing to produce fishing licence
• Consuming liquor in a public place.
   

The public is reminded that all fishing in a sanctuary is unlawful.  Sanctuaries are in place to protect species and to ensure that species such as rainbow trout can reproduce with minimal human contact.

April 9, 2009
HIGH VIOLATION RATE DETECTED DURING WINTER ENFORCEMENT BLITZ

The Ministry of Natural Resources laid 18 charges and issued 54 warnings during a fishing enforcement blitz on lakes in the Barry’s Bay area of Renfrew County and Nipissing District in March.

Conservation officers from Pembroke and Bancroft districts involved in the enforcement effort found that 24 per cent of the anglers checked were in violation of a statute or regulation.

A ministry canine unit was used to track down an angler who attempted to evade officers involved in the blitz. The suspect was found and apprehended with the help of the Killaloe detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police.

Offences that resulted in charges and warnings include:

• Fishing without licence
• Fishing with too many lines
• Fishing with set lines
• Failing to produce licence
• Having open containers of liquor
• Failing to wear helmet on A.T.V.
• Operate A.T.V. no insurance
• Possess live bait in specified waters
• Use live bait in Provincial Park
• Obstruct conservation officer
• Catch and retain fish out of season

April 7, 2009
THREE-YEAR LICENCE SUSPENSION FOR SHOOTING AND ABANDONING LYNX

A Cobalt area man has lost all of his Ontario hunting privileges for three years after pleading guilty to shooting and abandoning a lynx.

The man was convicted of illegally hunting a furbearing mammal and abandoning the pelt. 

Court was told that on November 1, 2008, the man was driving on Portage Bay Road in Coleman Township when he saw a family of five lynx.  Four of the lynx ran off, but one of the animals stayed on the edge of the road.  The man took a .410 shotgun from the trunk of his car and shot the lynx, killing it instantly.  He then pushed the carcass of the lynx into the ditch and left.

The case was heard by Justice of the Peace in the Ontario Court of Justice, Temiskaming Shores, on March 26, 2009.

Lynx are classified as furbearing mammals and are protected under the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act.  Only licensed trappers may harvest lynx under a strict quota system.  Lynx are generally quiet, docile animals that pose no threat to humans.

April 3, 2009
$5,500 IN FINES FOR FISHING WITH SUSPENDED LICENCES

Two Scarborough men were fined a total of $5,500 for fishing while their fishing licences were suspended and for fishing during a closed season. 

The men both pleaded guilty to fishing for rainbow trout when the season was closed and to disobeying a court order prohibiting them from fishing. In addition to the fines, the two men had their fishing licences suspended for another two years.  They were also ordered to forfeit their fishing gear permanently.

The court heard that on the afternoon of October 22, 2008, during a routine patrol on Bowmanville Creek, Ministry of Natural Resources conservation officers from the Aurora District found the two men fishing for rainbow trout.

April 2, 2009 
$10,000 FINE FOR CONTRAVENING AGGREGATE PIT SITE PLAN

A company has been fined $10,000 for permitting the contravention of an aggregate licence site plan.

The company pleaded guilty to allowing the unlawful removal of a 30-metre treed setback on their licensed pit, in the former Township of Manvers, City of Kawartha Lakes. 

Court heard that the Ministry of Natural Resources conducted the investigation leading to the charges during the late fall of 2007 and early 2008.  Under the Aggregates Resources Act, licensed operators must adhere to site plan conditions set out by the ministry.

The court also issued a rehabilitation order for the site.  The ministry and the licensed company have worked co-operatively to develop a rehabilitation plan.

The case was heard in the Ontario Court of Justice in Lindsay on March 27, 2009.

March 30, 2009
79 CHARGES IN LAKE SIMCOE FISHING ENFORCEMENT BLITZ

The Ministry of Natural Resources laid 79 charges and issued 95 warnings during a joint enforcement blitz on Lake Simcoe with York Regional Police during the March 14-15 weekend.
 
Conservation officers from the Aurora and Midhurst districts teamed up with York Regional Police officers to check anglers on the ice and at access points.  Officers checked that anglers were complying with the law while fishing for species such as lake trout, whitefish and yellow perch. They also watched for invasive species being used as bait.  The officers checked 1,050 people.

Charges and warnings were issued for:

• Catching and keeping too many fish
• Catching fish out of season
• Fishing without a licence
• Failing to produce a licence
• Fishing with too many lines
• Transporting illegally caught fish.

Officers also laid charges against individuals for liquor offences, not wearing helmets and not having proper permits and insurance for snow machines and all-terrain vehicles.
 

March 27, 2009
89 CHARGES LAID  DURING ENFORCEMENT BLITZ

The Ministry of Natural Resources laid 89 charges and issued 94 warnings during an enforcement blitz on Muskoka-area lakes during the March 14-15 weekend.

Conservation officers from the Parry Sound District and the ministry’s canine unit, along with officers of the Ontario Provincial Police SAVE team, checked anglers on the ice on lakes Rosseau, Joseph, Muskoka and Lake of Bays.

Offences that resulted in charges and warnings included:

• Fishing without a licence
• Failing to produce a licence
• Fishing with too many lines
• Fishing with set lines
• Occupying unnumbered ice fishing huts
• Failing to wear a helmet
• Having open containers of liquor
• Drug-related offences.

March 26, 2009
ICE FISHING OVER – OPEN WATER SEASON BEGINS

Conservation officers from Lake Erie and Aylmer Districts conducted numerous patrols on the ice-covered waters of Lake St. Clair, Lake Erie, Rondeau Bay and the Detroit River this winter to check for compliance with ice fishing and safety regulations.

In total, 760 resident anglers and 200 non-resident anglers were checked by conservation officers from early January until the last week in February.  Overall compliance with Ontario’s sport fishing and public safety related legislation was found to be 75 per cent.

A total of 76 charges and 168 warnings were issued for the following offences:

• Fishing without a licence
• Fishing with too many lines
• Being more than 60 metres away from fishing lines
• Fishing without a licence on your person
• Failing to produce a fishing licence
• Failing to wear a helmet on an off-road vehicle and snowmobile
• Having liquor in an open container.

Investigations are still ongoing and additional charges are pending.

Warnings were issued for:

• Failing to register an ice fishing hut
• Trespassing for the purpose of fishing
• Failing to have insurance for off-road vehicles and snowmobiles
• Driving an off-road vehicle and snowmobile without a permit.

With the open water season just around the corner, conservation officers will continue patrolling local waterways.  Anglers and pleasure boaters are reminded to be sure they have the required safety gear on board.

March 2009
ELEVEN CHARGES IN JOINT ENFORCEMENT BLITZ ON LAKE PANACHEThe Ministry of Natural Resources and the Ontario Provincial Police, with the Greater Sudbury Police Service, laid 11 charges and issued 14 warnings during a joint enforcement blitz in the Lake Panache area during spring break weekend, March 14-15.

Over 400 people were contacted and many infractions were encountered during the blitz.

Charges and warnings were issued for the following offences:

• over-limits of lake trout
• angling without a licence
• extra lines
• consuming liquor out of residence
• being too far away from fishing lines
• not possessing a fishing licence while angling
• not wearing a proper helmet while snowmobiling.

Anglers are reminded to have all valid licences required, to show to a conservation officer, if asked, and to transport fish in such a way that they can be easily identified, measured and counted.

March 2009 
$11,000 FINE FOR HUNTERS WHO ILLEGALLY SHOT A MOOSE

Two local residents have been fined a total of $11,000 for shooting a bull moose when they were only licensed to hunt a calf moose.

A man from Burks Falls, pleaded guilty to shooting the bull moose and was fined $10,000, forfeited his rifle, had his licence suspended for three years.  He is also required to take a hunter safety course prior to the reinstatement of his hunting privileges. 

A second man from Powassan, pleaded guilty to obstructing a conservation officer and was fined $1,000.

Court heard that on the opening day of the 2007 local moose hunt, conservation officers were informed of a possible illegally killed bull moose.  During the investigation, both men denied any involvement with the shooting of a moose. 

Eventually the officers were able to determine that the man from Burks Falls had shot a bull moose and asked a local Métis harvester to claim the animal under his rights.

The case was heard in the Ontario Court of Justice, Parry Sound, on March 19, 2009.