Person who shot and discarded geese faces charges

After four Canada geese were found shot and discarded in the Montague River in Valleyfield, P.E.I., Tuesday, charges are pending against a suspect, the province says.

Shooting and discarding fish and game including geese and ducks is an offence under the P.E.I. Wildlife Conservation Act.

"If hunters are just shooting them for the sake of shooting them and throwing them out, that's wilfully wasting game, and it's not ethical," said Wade MacKinnon, manager of investigation and enforcement with the Department of Justice and Public Safety.

'Tarnish the image'

The dead geese were spotted by a road crew working along the Dalmaney Road. Conservation officers collected the birds and launched an investigation.

A tip from the public led to an interview with a suspect, MacKinnon said, and charges against that person are pending.

The offence carries a penalty of a fine ranging from $200 to $2,000.

Conservation officers get two to five complaints of discarded game every year during the migratory-bird hunting season on P.E.I., MacKinnon said.

"It's rare for us to catch somebody," he said. "Today we were lucky.

"It does tarnish the image of the hunting community," MacKinnon said.

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