Sentenced: Two Sentenced After Moose With Babies Cut From Body Found In North Dakota

[Sugar Cookie]

The discovery was as mysterious as it was gruesome.

A pregnant moose lay slaughtered with two of her unborn calves cut from her body in a North Dakota field. A necropsy of the pregnant moose later revealed a third fetus inside her body.

Nearby, two more moose cows and two bulls also had been killed in April 2020 in a field near the Canadian border, officials said.

The North Dakota Game and Fish Department released flyers with disturbing images of the dead moose and offered a $2,000 reward in May 2020.

About eight months later, Shawn Morin Jr. and Jake Charbonneau were charged with a combined 19 wildlife crimes.

Officials said a poaching hotline for tipsters was “greatly beneficial” in the investigation and rewards will be granted.

Morin told investigators he shot two moose and several days later Charbonneau joined him and they killed three more, officials said.

As they field dressed a moose, cutting an incision in her stomach area, two fetuses fell out of the body and “spooked” them and they left all five behind, officials said.

Morin pleaded guilty to felony exploitation of wildlife, five misdemeanors each of unlawful taking of a big game animal and wanton waste of big game. Charbonneau pleaded guilty to three misdemeanors each of unlawful taking of a big game animal and wanton waste of big game and one count of aiding in taking big game.

Morin was sentenced to 120 days in jail and ordered to pay $5,560 in fines. He lost hunting privileges for three years and will no longer be able to hunt moose, elk or bighorn sheep in North Dakota.

Charbonneau was sentenced to 20 days in jail and ordered to pay $2,360 in fines.

https://www.macon.com/news/nation-world/national/article253761193.html

 

[knockout]

Way too lenient, higher fines and more jail time needed

 

[Symmachus]

That is monstrous to do that to such important creatures as moose, or to any wildlife or animal. This is a grotesque perversion and a vandalism of nature, and I hope that this follows both of these predatory men for the rest of their lives.

Those baby moose needed their mother.

 

[BuffettGirl]

So in reality, they killed 8 moose... Bastards!

And now I'm going to be totally naive here, do people eat moose? Was this for sport, or for feeding their families. It changes a little bit of how I feel about this if it was for food...

 

[Alf]

And now I'm going to be totally naive here, do people eat moose?

A moose is a member of the deer family. People do eat them.

North Dakota has an archery season in September and a regular season in October. These moose were killed out of season. As to whether they were killed to feed families? Moose are big. That is at least a winter's worth of meat on the hoof. The poachers didn't tend to their kills, though; they left all five dead moose in that field. That's where they rotted.

--Al

 

[BuffettGirl]

Thanks for the in @Alf. Now I'm developing a hate for these folks...

 

[thuumpr]

Hey Jake! Watch me pull a... whoa, wtf? Yech!

 

[Alxprkrkrls]

Is it common for a moose to carry 3 babies at once??? That seems like a lot for such a large animal!

 

[Sevens My Charm]

Moose is a good meal .. moose steak with sauteed mushrooms and red whine, a good wild rice and asparagus .. yummy .. this is a shameful and weak sentencing .. fines low .. jail time a joke and they get to hunt .. embarrassing ..

 

[knockout]

My moose meatloaf

 

[Turd Fergusen]

I'm in deer country here in WV. I know a lot of time they can have twins. Never heard or a moose or anything in that family having 3. Wonder if that is common with moose maybe. This is why they have hunting seasons, specifically to prevent shit like this from happening.

I've only eaten deer and elk. Both of which are great. I've heard nothing but good things about moose meat.

 

[Ramona the brave]

Sounds like something a guy named Jake would do.