Man will pay thousands after headless bull elk are left to rot, Montana officials say

A man left two headless bull elk to waste in Montana, officials said. Now he’ll pay thousands.

The 37-year-old Missoula man pleaded guilty to poaching two bull elk in October, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks said.

Officials said the man shot two bull elk on private property in the Little Snowy Mountains. He didn’t have permission or a necessary permit to kill the elk, wildlife officials said.

The man shot the two bull elk from the road and drove onto private property to get the elk, officials said.

“Later, (the man) discarded the elk keeping the heads, resulting in the wasting meat charge,” Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials said in a news release.

The man was banned from hunting, trapping and fishing for five years. He was also ordered to pay $2,000 in fines and restitution.

In a separate case, a 47-year-old Ballantine man pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a trophy big game animal and tampering with evidence, officials said.

The man shot a bull elk in November 2019 in the Little Snowy Mountains and was also banned from hunting for five years, officials said. He was ordered to pay $10,000 in fines and restitution.

This story was originally published September 19, 2022 at 2:37 PM with the headline "Man will pay thousands after headless bull elk are left to rot, Montana officials say."