WALTON COUNTY, Fla. — An alleged poacher was cited for shooting a deer out of season in a Wildlife Management Area in Walton County after Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) officers investigated a complaint, the FWC’s Division of Law Enforcement said last week.
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According to the FWC, officers responded to a complaint of an individual hunting in a closed area within the Lafayette Creek Wildlife Management Area.
An FWC investigator assisted officers with searching the area and observed a parked truck. The officers interviewed a subject reportedly returning to the truck on an electric bike.
During the interview, the subject allegedly stated he had been hunting wild hogs and denied hunting in a closed area.
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Officers said they followed the subject’s bike tracks and discovered the subject’s climbing stand and a recently killed antlered deer nearby. The officers said they recovered the deer and stand.
The suspect reportedly admitted to shooting the deer during the closed season in the Wildlife Management Area. The FWC said the suspect was issued several citations for the violations.
