A Cherryville man has been handed a $4,500 penalty and a two-year hunting ban for poaching a pregnant moose in his neighbourhood in 2023. 

Willem Tuijtel pleaded guilty in Vernon provincial court earlier this week to killing the moose outside of open season, a violation under the Wildlife Act, the Conservation Officer Service said Friday, May 2. 

The provincial service received a report of a moose potentially killed out of season in the Cherryville area in March 2023. Conservation officers investigated the site and located a gut pile and the fetal calf of a moose. 

Snowmobile tracks led to a nearby residence. Conservation officers executed a search warrant and seized a moose carcass, and a rifle and ammunition that was found to have been used to kill the moose. 

Tuijtel is prohibited from hunting or being in the company of hunters anywhere in B.C. for two years. His firearm and the moose carcass were forfeited. He must also retake the Conservation Outdoor Recreation Education course. 

鈥淲e鈥檇 like to thank the public for reporting this incident to the RAPP line,鈥� said Conservation Officer Ken Owens.

To report poaching, call the Conservation Officer Service's Report All Poachers and Polluters (RAPP) 24-hour hotline at 1-877-952-7277.