A reward has been offered in connection with a couple of incidents last fall in which cattle were shot.
According to a tweet from the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association (SSGA), the reward of up to $2,000 is being offered by the Saskatchewan Turn in Poachers and Polluters (SaskTIP) line.
Chad MacPherson, who is the general manager of the SSGA, said both incidents occurred during hunting season. There was also one in southwest Manitoba that was widely reported.
One incident in the southeast was in the Lampman-Alameda area. Two cattle were shot and killed. The other near Wawota led to the cattle surviving injuries that they suffered.
“As a result, we reached out to SaskTIPs, which is a non-profit organization that deals with hunting and pollution crimes, and gives opportunity for people to report environmental crimes,” said MacPherson.
As for the incident in Manitoba, it occurred in the Reston area.
One of the photos in the reward poster is of an animal that was shot in Manitoba.
MacPherson said it’s hard to know for sure right now whether these incidents were related, but the timing and the close proximity of the shootings could mean a connection.
“It’s not uncommon for sometimes animals to be injured in hunting season, but these ones seem kind of blatantly criminal in nature versus an accidental shooting. It was alarming that people were just injuring animals for just entertainment,” said MacPherson.
He has seen situation similar to this in North Dakota, but this is the first time he knows of it happening in Saskatchewan in the past few years.
The SSGA has been in contact with the RCMP and conservation officers in southeast Saskatchewan regarding the incidents.
This is also the first time that the SSGA has gone to SaskTIPS for a reward on a crime.
Anyone with information can call SaskTIPs at 1-800-667-7561.
