A man from the Star City area has pleaded guilty to numerous wildlife offences and has been fined $15,000.

Sixty-seven-year-old Ivan Beuker faced those charges in Melfort provincial court after he illegally hunted multiple deer on his rural property west of Star City.

In a government release on Monday morning, the Ministry of Environment says conservation officers in Melfort received a report of a dead deer on Jan. 7, 2021 on the property. Officers later discovered 10 dead white-tailed deer on the piece of land.

According to the ministry, when Beuker was being interviewed about the discovery, he admitted he had shot the herd between Jan. 1 and Jan. 6, 2021. Beuker said he had shot the deer because they were causing damage to trees and shrubs on an adjacent property, adding that the deer had all been shot at night while they were feeding.

Conservation officers responded to a second call on Jan. 10 in the same area and located two more dead white-tailed deer. Through investigation it was confirmed they all had died of gunshot trauma.

Beuker’s charges include illegal hunting, waste of edible game, hunting within 500 metres of occupied buildings, hunting big game with a rimfire rifle and night hunting. He was also handed a three-year hunting suspension.

Reporting wildlife-caused property damage

The government noted that Beuker did not contact the Ministry of Environment to report the damage on his property.

The ministry is encouraging residents to visit the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation’s webpage to learn more about prevention techniques and compensation programming if they are concerned about any wildlife-related property damage.

Residents can also call the province’s Turn In Poaches and Polluters line for suspected wildlife, fisheries, forestry or environmental violations. Tips can be reported online.