assive Poaching Operation Lands Ohio Man a 4-Year Prison Sentence
Four years prison time and some fines doesn’t seem to be enough in the public’s eyes, but he won’t be disrespecting the sport for quite sometime.
Poaching has always been around, unfortunately, but with social media and how quickly “news” spreads, poaching seems to be more prevalent than ever.
Poaching is never good in any situation. You often hear people say if someone has to take a doe to feed the family when times are tough, so be it, but when you hear a story like this one, it’s frustrating.
Robert Freeworth, 37, of Grand Rapids, Ohio, has been sentenced to four years in prison by Wood County Common Pleas Judge Reeve Kelsey for leading a large poaching operation that included illegally shooting deer out of season, shooting deer at night, improperly handling a firearm in a motor vehicle, the illegal sale of venison, tampering with records, and additional wildlife violations.
Seeing the substantial number of good whitetail deer in the photos is almost sickening.
Freeworth pleaded guilty and was slammed with over $5,500 worth of fines for the whitetails he had poached. He was also forced to forfeit the 51 items, consisting of two rifles, a muzzleloader, a sport utility vehicle, numerous trophy deer mounts, deer parts, and venison that the Ohio Department of Natural Resources confiscated earlier in the year.
Four years prison time and some fines doesn’t seem to be enough in the public’s eyes, but he won’t be disrespecting the sport for quite sometime.
Poaching has always been around, unfortunately, but with social media and how quickly “news” spreads, poaching seems to be more prevalent than ever.
Poaching is never good in any situation. You often hear people say if someone has to take a doe to feed the family when times are tough, so be it, but when you hear a story like this one, it’s frustrating.
Robert Freeworth, 37, of Grand Rapids, Ohio, has been sentenced to four years in prison by Wood County Common Pleas Judge Reeve Kelsey for leading a large poaching operation that included illegally shooting deer out of season, shooting deer at night, improperly handling a firearm in a motor vehicle, the illegal sale of venison, tampering with records, and additional wildlife violations.
Seeing the substantial number of good whitetail deer in the photos is almost sickening.
Freeworth pleaded guilty and was slammed with over $5,500 worth of fines for the whitetails he had poached. He was also forced to forfeit the 51 items, consisting of two rifles, a muzzleloader, a sport utility vehicle, numerous trophy deer mounts, deer parts, and venison that the Ohio Department of Natural Resources confiscated earlier in the year.
