BOISE, Idaho — Five southwest Idaho men were charged with over 50 wildlife violations stemming from a 2021 hunting incident, which resulted in more than $21,000 in fines, 15 years in license revocations, 34 years of probation, 330 hours of community and the forfeiture of their kill.
An investigation by the Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG), first started in 2021, led to charges being filed in six different Idaho counties where the crimes occurred, including trespassing, malicious injury to property, unlawfully taken bass, spearfishing violations, hunting turkeys with electronic calls, as well as multiple deer and pronghorn hunting violations.
The men have accrued additional penalties in even more counties as recently as August 2022, including in Custer County.
Penalties were recently issued in multiple counties, including August 2022 in Custer County, to the five wildlife violators including:
Todd A. Phillips, of Fruitland, was found guilty of five of the 13 original charges; seven were dismissed as part of a plea agreement. Phillips was given $6,900 in fines, 12 years of probation, a 12-year hunting license revocation (seven of which are suspended pending future violations), 100 hours of community service instead of jail, and forfeiting his 2020 and 2021 pronghorn.
Philips also plead guilty to a turkey hunting violation in Payette County, receiving a $350 fine, and a $1,000 bond forfeiture for deer hunting violations in Adams County. As part of his sentencing and probation, Philips cannot be in possession of any weapon where hunting activities can take place, including crossbows, air guns, bows, or firearms.
Darin Phillips, of Fruitland, was found guilty of five of the seven original charges, with two being dismissed as part of a plea agreement. He received $6,300 in fines, ten years of probation, a ten-year hunting license revocation (five of which are suspended pending a violation of probation) and 100 hours of community service instead of jail.
Braeden T. Phillips, of Payette, was found guilty of three charges. He received $3,970 in fines, six years of probation, a nine-year hunting license revocation (six years suspended pending a violation of his probation), and 60 hours of community service instead of jail. Philips also had his 2021 pronghorn forfeited, and had to pay a $400 bond forfeiture in Kootenai County for two spearfishing violations.
Jacob Phillips, of Fruitland, was found guilty of two of the six original charges, with four charges being dismissed as part of a plea agreement. He received $990 in fines, four years of probation, a five-year hunting license revocation, and 50 hours of community service instead of jail. Because Jacob was under 21 at the time of the incident, his hunting privileges can be reinstated after one year if he completes a hunter education course. Jacob also pled guilty to one charge in Payette County, receiving a $400 fine.
Jeff Mosso, of Parma, was found guilty of one of the four original charges, with three of his charges being dismissed as part of a plea agreement. He received $1,665 in fines, two years of probation, a three-year license suspension (two years are suspended pending a probation violation) and 20 hours of community service instead of jail.
IDFG received a phone call during the 2021 pronghorn archery season reporting a group trespassing in the Pahsimeroi Valley. That initial call led to an extensive investigation that resulted in the aforementioned men's charges.
"That initial phone call from the public was crucial," said Chad Wippermann, Fish and Game conservation officer who led the investigation. "It's what started the entire investigation."
The suspects were already gone by the time Wippermann arrived on the scene, but evidence left behind showed vehicle tracks through an alfalfa field, which ended at a small pool of blood and hair.
According to Wippermann, it looked like someone had shot a pronghorn in the field and had loaded it into their car without first dressing it. While pronghorn archery season was in progress at the time, the landowner had not given permission for anyone to hunt on his land.
IDFG interviewed hunters in the area and were able to get a vehicle description, which led investigators to Payette where the suspects lived. Two days later, Wippermann was told about a vehicle vandalism in Pahsimeroi Valley, where a pronghorn had been thrown onto the vehicle's hood leaving blood, hair, and several dents behind.
After multiple interviews with the suspects in Fruitland, Payette and Parma, investigators learned of even more violations on top of trespassing. There was evidence showing pronghorn being chased with a vehicle and being shot at out of the windows by crossbows and a rifle.
There were other violations too, like killing waterfowl and upland game birds during a closed season, killing protected species, hunting during closed seasons or at night, hunting without tags or licenses, as well as vandalizing the vehicle in the Pahsimeroi Valley, in Custer County.
"The investigation revealed a shocking number of fish and game violations," Wippermann said.
While the penalties may seem significant, prosecuting law violators is often still a challenge. According to Wippermann, it is common in investigations for wildlife violations to span multiple years while going undetected, due to Idaho's short statute of limitations law.
"We discovered numerous other violations during this investigation but couldn't charge due to the statute of limitations on species other than big game," Wippermann said.
Idaho is, however, a member of the Wildlife Violator Compact, which means that if someone's hunting, fishing or trapping license is revoked by any of the 49 member states, all the remaining states will revoke the same license or privilege for the same time period.
IDFG said this case is a great example of how the public can play a vital role in helping solve wildlife crimes. Anyone with information pertaining to wildlife crime is encouraged to "Make the Call" to the Citizens Against Poaching (CAP) hotline at 1-800-632-5999.
Callers can remain anonymous and are sometimes eligible for a cash reward.
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