Internet bragging leads to poaching bust

An Oregon man who proudly posted pictures of his big game kills on a website has been convicted of poaching the animals near his father’s home in Trout Creek.

The state Attorney General’s Office recently completed successful prosecutions of Paul Harvey III of Grants Pass, Ore., his father, Paul Harvey Jr., and his stepmother, Rita Harvey.

“He basically painted himself into a corner,” Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Warden Brian Sommers said in referring to the younger Harvey.

“This is the first Internet case that I’ve worked where we made a case out of it,” said Summers, the lead investigator.

A total of nine animals were taken illegally.

Acting on a tip, Sommers looked into a website called “Webshots” and found that Harvey had been posting photographs of himself and his father posing with rifles and downed deer. But it wasn’t immediately clear whether the animals had been illegally harvested or where they had been harvested.

Taking a license plate number off of a four-wheeler in one of the photos, Summers was able to identify the elder Harvey and his home in the Trout Creek area.

Further digging revealed that the younger Harvey had purchased deer and elk licenses in the late 1980s. From 1996 through 2007, however, he continued harvesting game without licenses.

“He just quit” buying licenses, Sommers said. “But he continued hunting here.”

Some of the animals were transported across state lines to Harvey’s home in Grants Pass. The investigation also revealed that the elder Harvey had a bait station to attract deer in the area of a nearby shooting blind.

One photo used for evidence showed a salt block in a field with a caption, “Deer Stand View,” and another photo shows a man near the salt block, holding a bag, with the caption, “Feeding deer.”

Sommers said searches were conducted in 2008 at the homes in Trout Creek and Grants Pass by himself, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Oregon State Police.

Ultimately, the investigation determined that nine animals, including two elk and seven deer, were taken illegally.  

“He wasn’t a person who was doing it just to shoot animals,” Sommers said. “There were a couple years where he didn’t shoot anything.”

The Harveys pleaded guilty in Sanders County court proceedings last December and January. The sentencing orders were not issued until this month.

Under an agreement with the state, Paul Harvey III pleaded guilty to felony unlawful possession of game animals and a misdemeanor charge of unlawful alteration or use of a license. He was fined $50, ordered to pay $10,000 restitution and lost hunting privileges for five years.

Paul Harvey Jr. pleaded guilty to felony unlawful possession of game animals by accountability, and a misdemeanor charge of unlawful alteration or use of a license. He was originally charged with tampering with evidence, another felony, for attempting to alter information on a computer.

He was ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution and lost his hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for five years.

Rita Harvey pled guilty to a misdemeanor charge of unlawful alteration, transfer or use of a game license. She was fined $235 and lost hunting privileges for 12 months.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com