Lions President Rod Wood provides new details on Cameron Sutton situation

Lions President Rod Wood provides new details on the Cam Sutton situation around the team

Detroit Lions team president Rod Wood on Monday provided new details on the situation surrounding Cameron Sutton, who was released by the team after it discovered he is wanted on a domestic violence warrant.

Wood said he was on a call with league officials when he learned of the warrant. Team officials sought out Sutton and found he had shown up unexpectedly to work with the strength staff at the team facility, Wood said.

 

“As soon as that call (with league officials) wrapped up, we kind of quickly convened to talk about it,” Wood said. “We were able to reach Cam and talked about it and suggested he get counsel and do the right thing to turn himself in. After that, we met the rest of the day and the following morning to decide to release him.”

As of the morning of March 26, Sutton had not yet turned himself in despite the team’s advice.

The warrant stems from Sutton being charged with domestic battery by strangulation in an incident that allegedly occurred on March 7, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.

That office has indicated that they have had no luck in reaching the cornerback and they believe he is no longer in possession of his phone. They have had no contact with him, nor have the Lions since he was in their facility.

Missouri man charged with stealing Dolphins’ equipment

Missouri man charged with stealing equipment from the Dolphins during their playoff game against the Chiefs.

After the Miami Dolphins were eliminated from the playoffs by the Kansas City Chiefs, they had more losses to worry about than just the result on the field at Arrowhead Stadium.

According to court documents, Missouri police officers responded to a theft the day after the Jan. 13 game. Representatives from the Dolphins said a team truck that held both gear and equipment was broken into and items worth more than $45,000 were missing.

On Wednesday, two months after the contest, Jackson County prosecutors charged Joseph Brown Sr. with felony theft.

The documents claim that media equipment, football equipment (including pads, gloves and shoes) and game film, along with other items, were taken.

Brown had previously been convicted of felony theft in 2021, according to court documents. His bond was set at $50,000.

Men plead guilty to killing wild burros in California desert

The two men wore tactical gear and night-vision goggles when they set out with AR-style weapons and killed three burros.

Two men pleaded guilty Monday to federal criminal charges of shooting and killing three wild burros in California’s Mojave Desert.

Christopher James Arnet, 32, of Loveland, Colo., and Cameron John Feikema, 36, of Yorba Linda, Calif., each pleaded guilty to possession of an unregistered firearm and “maliciously” killing a burro on public lands.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, both men wore tactical gear, ballistic helmets and night-vision goggles when they set out with AR-style weapons on Nov. 5, 2021, near Yermo in San Bernardino County.

At about 1 a.m. on Nov. 6 they teamed to fire 13 rounds, killing three burros.

According to their plea agreements, one burro was paralyzed in its hind quarters with a spine shot by Arnet before it eventually died.

During the Bureau of Land Management investigation, the weapons used in the shootings were seized at Arnet’s and Feikema’s residences. The firearms, including a short-barreled rifle, were not registered.

The men forfeited the weapons, tactical gear, and 4,000 rounds of ammunition.

Both men face up to 11 years in federal prison. On Monday in Riverside, U.S. District Judge Jesus G. Bernal scheduled their sentencing hearings for July 8.

‘Rare game species’ poached in Oregon; reward set at $4,500

Authorities say the poacher removed the head and horns from the bighorn sheep ram and left the carcass to waste.

A $4,500 reward is being offered in Oregon for information leading to the felony arrest of the poacher who killed a Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep for its head and horns.

The carcass was discovered last Nov. 30 on BLM land near Hibbard Creek Road south of Baker City. An investigation has turned up few leads.

“It’s so hard to believe that someone would shoot and waste such an amazing animal,” Kevin Martin, president of the Oregon Wild Sheep Foundation, stated in an Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife news release.

“The Lookout Mountain herd of bighorn sheep is an area ODFW, Wild Sheep Foundation, OR WSF and our partners have been focusing a lot of resources to understand what has caused the ongoing loss of animals and this criminal act just adds to that loss.”

Oregon is home to about 800 Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep and hunting is strictly regulated, with only about 100 tags issued each year.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife states on its website: “Bighorn sheep tags are ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ so you can only draw the tag once. If you are lucky enough to do so, scouting and being physically prepared for their rugged country are key.”

The poacher had no tag and left the carcass to waste.

Illegally killing a bighorn sheep in Oregon carries a penalty of up to $10,000 in fines, suspension of hunting license, and forfeiture of the weapon used to kill the sheep.

“In this case, additional charges of waste of a game mammal would likely apply,” the ODFW added.

The $4,500 reward was put up by multiple groups and announced Thursday.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Oregon State Police Dispatch at 1-800-452-7888, *OSP (*677), or email at TIP@osp.oregon.gov.
Tipsters can choose to remain anonymous.

Poacher threatens to kill landowner, gets jail and lifetime hunting ban

A 22-year-old man apparently learned nothing from his previous conviction for poaching. Will his punishment this time be enough deterrence?

A 22-year-old man pointed a gun at and threatened to kill a landowner who confronted him about illegally hunting at night with a spotlight from a vehicle during a closed season.

William Franklin Stamey Jr., who had a previous poaching conviction and obviously did not learn from his poor choice, received a felony conviction for his latest misdeeds, which cost him $12,500 in restitution, along with fines and court costs. The 22-year-old also was banned for life from hunting and forfeited a spotlight, a muzzleloader, a rifle, and a compound bow, along with deer meat, turkey parts and 14 deer racks.

On Friday, Stamey pleaded guilty in Hawkins County Circuit Court to aggravated assault, spotlighting deer, hunting from a motor vehicle, and a second and third offense of hunting big game in closed season, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency disclosed in a Facebook post.

“Stamey was ordered to serve six months of a four-year sentence for the aggravated assault charge, and six months for each of the hunting big game in closed season charges, with all jail time to run concurrently,” the post stated.

Last August 16 around 11:30 p.m., Stamey and an accomplice were hunting from a road on McKinney Chapel Road and, aided by a spotlight, killed a doe and a seven-point buck from their vehicle during a closed season.

When a landowner confronted him, Stamey pointed a gun at him and threatened to kill him.

The landowner presumably contacted law enforcement, and later that night a Hawkins County Sheriff’s deputy stopped the poachers and discovered them to be possession of a spotlight and hunting rifles. Stamey and the driver were taken into custody and a third vehicle occupant was charged as an accessory. The driver and the accessory will appear in court later this month.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency was contacted and an investigation uncovered further poaching activity.

When Wildlife Officer Justin Pinkston went to serve Stamey with a criminal summons on September 15, he discovered a buck deer carcass in his backyard. Records indicated that Stamey had checked the deer in as an archery harvest on August 27, but did not possess an archery license.

Four days later, TWRA executed a search warrant on Stamey’s residence where 11 more sets of deer antlers were found; Stamey admitted to poaching them. He also admitted to shooting a bearded hen turkey in 2022. he failed to check it in as required by law.

“Over a three-and-a-half-year period, Stamey was charged with killing or assisting in killing 15 deer illegally, and admitted to poaching 20 deer from the road in 2020 alone,” Pinkston said. “Sadly, most of these deer were left lying and were never recovered.”

In May 2021, Stamey entered a plea agreement for spotlighting, hunting from a public roadway and deer hunting in a closed season in Greene County in November 2020. Further details were not revealed about that case.

Wolf-poaching incident near Yellowstone under investigation

Authorities in Montana would not say how the wolf was killed or whether it might have belonged to one of Yellowstone National Park’s known packs.

Authorities in Montana are investigating a suspected wolf-poaching incident that occurred recently near Yellowstone National Park.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks stated Wednesday that the wolf was killed near Mol Heron and Cinnabar creeks northwest of Gardiner on Jan. 27.

Gardiner is just outside Yellowstone’s North Entrance.

FWP spokesman Morgan Jacobsen, citing an active investigation, did not provide details regarding how the wolf was killed or whether it had belonged to a pack that lives mostly inside the park.

“I can confirm that a wolf died likely as a result of a poaching incident a few miles north of Yellowstone National Park,” Jacobsen told FTW Outdoors. “And Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is conducting an investigation.”

The Yellowstone National Park Public Affairs Office also declined to provide details, citing the FWP investigation.

News From The States reports that the wolf was killed inside Montana’s Wolf Management Unit 313, where a hunting quota of six wolves was filled by Dec. 27.

All six wolves, as a Yellowstone National Park spokeswoman recently confirmed to FTW Outdoors, “belonged to packs that spend the majority of their lives inside Yellowstone National Park and have territories largely within the park.”

FWP is seeking help from the public as part of its investigation. Anyone with potentially helpful information is asked to visit myfwp.mt.gov/fwpPub/tipmont or call 1-800-TIP-MONT.

Informants could be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

–Generic Yellowstone wolf image courtesy of the National Park Service

Alaska man cited for harassing moose with vehicle; video

Footage shows the moose running for its life and ultimately falling on the ice as vehicle comes partially into view.

An Alaska resident has been cited for harassing a young moose by allegedly chasing the animal in his four-wheeler along the iced-over Yukon River.

Elliot Edwards, 38, of Pilot Station, was cited “for using a motor vehicle to harass, herd, drive, or molest game,” according to the Alaska Department of Public Safety.

Troopers cited Edwards after receiving a tip from a concerned citizen and reviewing video footage posted to Facebook by Edwards on Jan. 27. (The footage was still public at the time of this post and can be viewed below.)

In the footage, the moose is running for its life and ultimately slips on the ice as the red vehicle comes partially into view.

A dispatch from The Alaska Department of Public Safety:

“The moose attempted to get to safety multiple times, but was unable because of high river banks. The four-wheeler continued to chase the moose until it slipped on the ice.

“[An] investigation determined on January 29, 2024, Edwards used a red Honda four-wheeler to chase a calf moose until it slipped on the ice.”

Edwards is scheduled to be arraigned March 7 in Bethel.

–Generic moose image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Feds offer $50,000 reward after 3 wolves are found dead in Oregon

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is hoping the large sum will help authorities catch those responsible for poaching three endangered wolves from the same pack.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is hoping that a $50,000 reward will help authorities catch and prosecute the person or persons responsible for killing three endangered wolves in Oregon.

An investigation was launched after Oregon State Police Fish and Wildlife troopers found the carcasses of two collared research wolves and an un-collared wolf last Dec. 29 in Klamath County.

All three wolves – a breeding adult female (OR115) and two subadults – belonged to the Gearhart Mountain Pack.

Troopers responded after Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife  biologists received mortality signals from the two collars.

The ODFW stated Friday in a news release: “ODFW and OSP are assisting USFWS in the investigation of three Gearhart Mountain Pack wolves found dead in late December.

“ODFW is aware of seven wolves remaining in the Gearhart Mountain Pack including the breeding male. ODFW continues to monitor these wolves.”

Neither agency revealed how the wolves were killed but the case is reminiscent of a 2021 case – also involving a $50,000 reward – centered around the poisoning deaths of all five members of the Catherine wolf pack.

Gray wolves are federally endangered in the western two-thirds of Oregon.

Anyone with potentially helpful information is asked to call the USFWS at (503) 682-6131, or the Oregon State Police Dispatch at (800) 452-7888. Tipsters can also text *OSP (*677), or email TIP@osp.oregon.gov.

Callers can remain anonymous.

–Generic gray wolf image courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

‘Careless’ coyote hunter cited after accidentally shooting partner

A 70-year-old hunter was hospitalized in Colorado after one of his partners shot him while swinging his shotgun toward a coyote.

A 70-year-old hunter was hospitalized in Colorado on Thursday after one of his partners accidentally shot him instead of the coyote they were pursuing.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife stated in a news release that three hunters, all from Iowa, took aim at a coyote that appeared 50 feet in front of them in Baca County.

One man fired first, and missed the coyote. He then swung his shotgun and fired again, hitting his 70-year-old partner.

“This is a classic example of failure to maintain ‘zone of fire’ awareness,” said Todd Marriott, CPW area wildlife manager based in Lamar. “Hunters must always know where their target is and where the rest of their party is at all times.”

The unidentified victim was hospitalized in Colorado Springs and released after being treated for pellet wounds.

The shooter was identified as Matthew Mullenix, 48, of Urbandale, Iowa. He was charged with careless hunting, an unclassified misdemeanor, and will be fined up to $1,000.

–Coyote image courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Tavistock owner Joe Lewis, who developed Isleworth and Lake Nona, pleads guilty to securities fraud scheme

The beneficiaries of the non-public information sharing reaped millions of dollars in gains, according to the filing.

British multi-billionaire Joe Lewis – principal owner of Tavistock Group, the developer and owner of several elite golf courses in Florida and the Bahamas – pled guilty Wednesday to charges of a securities fraud scheme in federal court in Manhattan.

Prosecutors had charged Lewis, 86, with sharing insider information about the dealings of companies in which he was a large investor. Those who benefitted from the illegal information sharing included personal acquaintances such as romantic partners, assistants, friends and his pilots, according to an original filing by the United States Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York. The beneficiaries of the non-public information sharing reaped millions of dollars in gains, according to the filing.

Tavistock Group developed several notable golf properties, including Isleworth Golf and Country Club in Orlando and the nearby Lake Nona Golf and Country Club. Many notable golf professionals live at these Central Florida properties, and past residents include Tiger Woods – it was at Isleworth where Woods in 2009 famously crashed into a fire hydrant, landing him in a nearby emergency room.

The company operated the Tavistock Cup from 2004 to 2013, with PGA Tour and LPGA stars from the company’s courses competing in a team event. Besides Isleworth and Lake Nona, that event grew to include the company’s Albany property in the Bahamas and several other clubs not developed by Tavistock.

In all, the Bahamas-based holding company has investments in more than 200 companies, including the soccer club Tottenham Hotspur of the English Premier League. Tavistock Group reports on its website that it’s focused primarily on real estate, hospitality, agriculture and financial services.

After initially denying any wrongdoing six months ago, Lewis pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, which carries a maximum potential sentence of five years in prison, and two counts of securities fraud, which each carry a maximum potential sentence of 20 years in prison. His acceptance of a plea deal will shorten his potential time behind bars.

As part of the plea deal, Lewis and his company Broad Bay Ltd. will pay $50 million in financial penalties. Lewis also faces federal sentencing guidelines of 18-24 months in prison, but the judge can reduce that sentence. A sentencing date has not been selected. Lewis also must relinquish any board seats he held in publicly traded companies in the U.S.

“I knew that I was violating a legal duty not to make those recommendations because the nonpublic information had been entrusted to me in confidence,” he said according to an Associated Press report. “I knew at the time what I was doing was wrong, and I am so embarrassed and I apologize to the court for my conduct.”

Prosecutors wrote that in addition to the insider trading, Broad Bay Ltd. and other corporate entities under the direction and control of Lewis engaged in a scheme to hide his ownership and control shares of a pharmaceutical company through a pattern of false filings and misleading statements.

“Today’s guilty pleas once again confirm – as I said in announcing the charges against Joseph Lewis just six months ago – the law applies to everyone, no matter who you are or how much wealth you have,” said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. “Billionaire Lewis abused inside information he gained through his access to corporate boardrooms to tip off his friends, employees and romantic interests. Now, he will pay the price with a federal conviction, the prospect of time in prison and the largest financial penalty for insider trading in a decade.”