In a case that highlights both the scale of illegal hunting and some of the personal demons driving it, an Osage County man has reached a plea agreement after facing 140 separate wildlife violations uncovered during a multi-agency investigation.
Our story kicks off in the winter of 2024 when Game Warden Larry Green received a complaint about a Pawhuska resident road hunting and illegally taking deer. Warden Green along with Warden Spencer Grace launched a thorough investigation that included cross-checking licensing and harvest records, reviewing social media, and building the probable cause they needed for a search warrant.
Late in December 2024, a team including Wardens Green, Grace, Jeremy Bersche, Jake Bersche, Lt. Paul Welch, and Osage County Sheriff’s Office executed the warrant. What they found was shocking and included dozens of illegal deer (over 30 referenced), hawks, eagles, turkeys, furbearers, and a variety of trophies. According to the investigating wardens, much of the venison was not utilized and was found rotting and wasted.
In an interview on the Warden Stories YouTube channel, Warden Spencer Grace described the moment they entered the residence. According to Grace, the suspect looked up from his table and said, “I’ve been waiting for you guys.” Grace went on to explain that the deeper motivation behind the crimes revolved around the fact that the man had replaced a severe drug addiction with the adrenaline high of illegal poaching. As Grace recounted, poaching animals gave him the same high that those drugs did, turning the illegal activity into his new addiction over roughly three years.
Following the investigation, game wardens presented a staggering 140 violations to the Osage County District Attorney’s Office. Had the case gone to full trial and resulted in convictions on every count, fines and restitution could have exceeded $152,000.
Rather than fighting the full slate of charges, the suspect accepted a plea agreement that included $30,000 in restitution to the State of Oklahoma for the wildlife losses, along with $2,806 in fines and court costs. He was also sentenced to 20 weekends in jail, required to forfeit all long-guns (rifles and shotguns), and had his hunting and fishing licenses revoked for approximately six years, tied to probation and payment compliance.
