Recent actions by law enforcement agencies in Northeast Michigan. This has been only lightly edited.

MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES

Dec. 13-26

MONTMORENCY COUNTY

CO Sidney Collins was working the December elk hunt when a lost hunter was reported in Montmorency County. CO Collins was in the area and was able to quickly locate the hunter in the Pigeon River Forest. The hunter stated he shot a cow elk and when he went to walk out of the woods his cell phone died, preventing him from calling for help or assisting him with directions. At this point, the hunter was found but was unable to recall where the cow elk he shot was. COs Collins and Nathan Beelman were able to assist the hunter in finding his dead cow elk. The COs then assisted in pulling the elk out of the woods for the hunter.

Sgt. Mike Mshar and CO Sidney Collins assisted CO Jon Sheppard with a bull elk kill in Montmorency County. A bull elk was found dead during the late elk hunt. The bull was claimed by two different hunters who both claimed to have shot at a similar sized elk. A necropsy was performed to retrieve the bullet. The bullet was measured and found to belong to one of the hunters. Ironically, it was not the hunter who gutted the bull elk.

CO Sidney Collins responded to a double cow elk kill in Montmorency County. The hunter shot twice at what he thought was the same cow elk. When the hunter walked up to the dead elk, he discovered that another cow elk close by was dead. The hunter self-reported the incident. He stated the cow elk must have switched places after the first shot. COs Collins, Matt Theunick, and Sgt. Bill Webster were able to assist the hunter with his legally shot cow elk. The other elk was donated to a local food bank. Charges are being sought for the second illegally taken cow elk.

CO Dan Liestenfeltz was patrolling in Montmorency County when he observed a snowmobile drive past him with no trail permit and no registration. CO Liestenfeltz initiated a stop on the snowmobile. After talking with the operator and explaining the law, CO Liestenfeltz issued the operator a ticket for not having a trail permit.