A complaint logged in 2014 led to a massive two-year investigation that eventually saw a B.C. farmer laid with six charges including killing wildlife out of season, unlawful possession of dead wildlife, failure to report killing wildlife, failure to state location of wildlife killed, and resisting or obstructing an officer from conducting their duty.
The accused, Arlan Harry Baer who runs a farm roughly 300 km east of Prince George, was found to have shot a grizzly bear sow and three cubs. Baer made his appearance in court in October of 2016 and again in 2017 where he was recently fined for the incident that took place nearly three years ago.
As a threatened species in the province of British Columbia, the loss of a grizzly sow and cubs can certainly be deemed a significant one according to Sgt. Rory Smith of the B.C. Conservation Service.
“Grizzly bears are considered a threatened species in this province,” Smith told CBC News. “Yes, it is significant.”
Baer pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to report the killing or wounding of wildlife while the remaining charges were stayed.
The court ordered the B.C. man to pay a $500 fine and a $1,500 payment to the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation.