Moose Poaching - Case Resolution

After a months-long investigation, two individuals have been sentenced to jail for killing five moose. In May of 2020, District Game Warden Jonathan Tofteland received the initial report of a dead moose six miles south of Dunseith. District game wardens Tofteland and Sam Feldmann, with the help of the reporting party, found a total of five dead moose in the area that had been shot. One of the moose had two fetuses removed from an incision in the stomach area. A third fetus was found during a necropsy from the North Dakota Game and Fish Department’s wildlife lab.

Multiple game wardens from Region 2 found enough evidence and received information from the public that led them to suspects Shawn Morin Jr. and Jake Charbonneau as the individuals responsible. With cooperating confessions from the suspects, the Rolette County State’s Attorneys Office was able to charge the two with multiple charges, including illegal taking and wanton waste of big game animal. Morin Jr. confessed to shooting moose on two separate occasions. He shot two by himself and days later went out with Charbonneau and shot three more. They attempted to field dress one of the moose and the fetuses came out, which spooked them so they left all the moose.

Morin Jr. plead guilty to one Class C felony, five Class A misdemeanors and five Class B misdemeanors. He was sentenced to 120 days in jail, loss of all hunting privileges for three years and had to pay $5,560 in fines, fees and restitutions. Morin Jr. will also never be able to hunt moose, elk or bighorn sheep in North Dakota for life.

Charbonneau plead guilty to three Class A misdemeanors and four Class B misdemeanors. He was sentenced to 20 days in jail, 2 years of unsupervised probation and had to pay $2,360 in fines, fees and restitution.

Other agencies that assisted were Bureau of Criminal Investigations and Rolette County Sheriff’s Department.

The RAP program was a huge help in this case. The assistance from the public in contacting the district game wardens with information was greatly beneficial in solving this case. The reporting parties will be receiving a reward for their help.

- District Game Warden Jonathan Tofteland