Men admit to killing too many geese, using electonic calling device during January 2012 hunt, LDWF says.
Two Vermilion Parish men admitted last week that they violated several goose-hunting regulations last January, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries reportd.
Kaplan’s Ryan Frederick, 23, and 23-year-old Dustin Fontenot of Abbeville pleaded guilty on Oct. 17 to taking over the daily bag limit of white-fronted geese, hunting geese with an electronic calling device and for failing to maintain custody of their birds in the field, the LDWF said.The guilty pleas were entered in the U.S. Western District Court of Louisiana in Lafayette.
The were ordered by Judge Patrick Hanna to each pay a total of $2,155 in fines and fees, and they were placed them on two years of probation that includes a prohibition of hunting any migratory game birds.
In connection with this case, 23-year-old Zayne Greene, 21-year-old Robert Russo and 21-year-old Drew Laborde, all from Abbeville, earlier pled guilty outside of court to hunting geese with an electronic calling device and failing to maintain custody of their birds in the field. These three men each paid $1,770 in fines and fees.
The legal case began after LDWF enforcement agents allegedly observed Frederick and Fontenot on an afternoon hunt north of Kaplan on Jan. 12.
When agents attempted to make contact with Frederick and Fontenot, the two men allegedly threw geese into a nearby canal to hide them. Agents allegedly recovered 17 white-fronted geese and five snow geese from the canal, and an electronic calling device used during the hunt after making contact with Frederick and Fontenot.
After further investigation, agents learned that Greene, Russo and Laborde participated in the hunt earlier in the afternoon during which the electronic calling device was used. Greene, Russo and Laborde also left harvested birds in the field.