The state of Idaho not too long ago convicted three members of the family for a string of poaching crimes that span a number of a long time. After a prolonged investigation, the Idaho Division of Fish & Sport (IDFG) charged Travis, Donald, and Eben Curtiss with 10 felonies, 8 misdemeanors, and fines in extra of $7,000 a bit. The clues that led to the conviction of “the Curtiss group”—as IDFG referred to as the criminals in a latest press launch—included a bullet retrieved from the physique of a poached elk and ideas from hunters who witnessed among the crimes.
“On November 2, 2021, the Curtiss group situated a big herd of elk close to Arco, ID,” IDFG stated within the Could 16 press launch. “Travis Curtiss was driving a pickup truck whereas his father Donald shot on the elk from the passenger aspect window and his son Eben shot on the elk from the mattress of the truck.”
The boys trailed the herd of their truck for a substantial distance, IDFG stated, whereas managing to shoot and kill a raghorn bull, a cow, a spike, and two mature bulls. “[They] drove previous these dying elk and picked up the pinnacle, quarters, and backstraps of the 2 mature bulls, leaving the remaining to waste,” the information launch states. “The investigation confirmed that they’d killed six unlawful elk, and there was good proof of one other bull that was mortally wounded, however officers have been unable to find it.”
In the meantime, two witnesses, who have been legitimately searching the identical elk herd, watched the stunning crimes unfold. They offered statements with detailed descriptions and later testified in court docket.
After one other witness gave brokers the license plate variety of a truck that matched the outline of the Curtiss’ car, conservation officers confronted the boys at their house. “[They] executed a search warrant, shortly after the group had returned house from the hunt and recovered each bulls,” IDFG stated. “The suspects initially agreed to speak with the officers, however rapidly invoked their fifth modification rights and refused to reply any questions.”
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With the poachers pleading the fifth, IDFG’s case received chilly. And it could have gone unsolved if not for the perception of a gun collector who aided in forensic evaluation of “the distinctive bullets shot by the Curtiss’s,” state agecny stated.
With the invaluable info that the gun collector offered, brokers have been capable of hyperlink Travis, Donald, and Eben Curtiss to the drive-by poaching incident from the autumn of 2021. Along with fines, the Division hit every poacher with a 10-year searching and trapping ban in addition to group service.
The witnesses acquired financial compensation for his or her function in bringing the Curtiss household’s long-running crime spree to an finish. “This story serves as a reminder that there are repercussions for committing wildlife crimes,” IDFG stated, “and that being a robust witness for wildlife might be the important thing part to resolve a poaching case.”
