Indiana conservation officers reported an anonymous tip has led to an investigation resulting in multiple charges. Sixty-nine-year-old Eddie Elliott of Petersburg, Ind., has been charged with the illegal taking of five whitetail deer, over-bagging on antlered deer and failure to check in a deer within 48 hours.

After an initial interview, Cpl. Trent Stinson obtained a search warrant for the Elliott property, and evidence of the violations was seized from the garage of the residence. The evidence included two antlered deer, and licensed hunters are only allowed one throughout the deer season (excluding urban deer zone bag limits and military refuge hunts).

Elliott later cooperated with the investigation and admitted to taking five deer without checking the carcasses in at a Department of Natural Resources (DNR) check station. Reimbursement for taking or possession of illegal deer can be $500 for the first violation and $1,000 for any subsequent violation.

To report fish and wildlife violations you can contact the TIP hotline at 800-TIP-IDNR (847-4367), text “IDNR” to TIP411 or report online at http://in.gov/ dnrtip/webroot

Tips can lead to arrests and cash rewards.

Conservation officers are investigating the senseless killing of a bobcat in Montgomery County. Bobcats are a protected species in Indiana, and there is no open season on them.

Investigators have determined the bobcat died from a single gunshot wound to the abdomen. Anyone with information in the case should contact the Turn in a Poacher hotline at 800-TIP-IDNR or fill out a complaint online at www.in.gov/dnr

A cash reward is available for anyone with information leading to an arrest in the case. Callers remain anonymous and are never asked to testify in court.

Conservation officers have completed an investigation leading to charges of theft and providing false information to a check station filed against 30-year-old Patrick Deweese of Evansville, Ind.

Officer Trent Stinson received a complaint from a camper at the Pike State Forest saying his deer had been stolen from his campsite. After speaking with the other campers at Pike State Forest, a deer matching the description of the one stolen was located in the back of another camper’s truck.

Deweese was interviewed and was initially misleading with information. An examination of the area where the deer was allegedly taken was devoid of any sign a deer had been harvested. Presented with the information and other aspects of the ensuing investigation, Deweese confessed the next day.

After stealing the deer, Deweese checked the deer in at a check station, claiming he had killed it. Theft is a Class D felony and carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Anyone wanting to report fish and wildlife crimes can call 800-TIP-IDNR.

Indiana conservation officers arrested two men on the evening of Dec. 4, and another was arrested on Dec. 5 following an incident occurring in southeastern Sullivan County on the evening of Dec. 4.

Christopher R. Roark, 21, and Wendell D. Stewart, 22, of Sandborn and Damond W. Roark Jr., 19, of Bicknell, Ind., were arrested for allegedly stealing an off-road vehicle.

While patrolling at Black Beauty’s Bear Run coal mine, officers spotted a vehicle parked in a remote area off of County Road 900 East, south of Pleasantville. While investigating the unoccupied, suspicious vehicle, officers observed an off-road vehicle (ORV) occupied by three men returning to the parked vehicle.

When officers attempted to stop and detain the men for trespassing, they immediately fled the scene in both vehicles. Officers pursued for a short time into the Goose Pond Fish & Wildlife Area, until they decided the pursuit was unsafe and terminated said pursuit.

Later the same evening, a nearby landowner reported a suspicious vehicle near the last known location of the suspect vehicle. Officers, with the assistance of the Greene County and Sullivan County sheriffs’ departments, the Indiana State Police and the Linton Police Department, responded to the complaint and located the suspect vehicle – a 1998 Chevrolet Cavalier, occupied by two males.

The two men were later identified as Christopher R. Roark and Wendell Stewart. Both were arrested and transported to the Sullivan County Jail. Damond W. Roark Jr., the third suspect in the incident, was found the following day and also arrested.

Conservation officers located the suspect’s ORV the following morning in a field near the Greene/Sullivan counties line. Officers learned the ORV had recently been stolen from a storage barn south of Pleasantville. The three suspects face criminal charges in Sullivan County, and additional charges will likely be filed in Greene County.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Jack Spaulding may contact him by email at jackspaulding@hughes.net or by writing to him in care of this publication.