Wilkes-Barre man found guilty of illegally killing bear last year

**NikeBauer21** · April 29th, 2010, 04:22 PM

http://www.timesleader.com/news/WB-m...last-year.html

WB man found guilty of illegally killing bear last year

TUNKHANNOCK -- Charles W. Olsen Jr., 39, of Wilkes-Barre, was found guilty today of illegally killing a 707-pound bear over bait during the 2009 hunting season, and ordered to pay fines and restitution of $6,800, plus court costs, according to Pennsylvania Game Commission Wildlife Conservation Officer Vic Rosa.

District Judge Carl Smith, of Tunkhannock, found Olsen guilty of unlawfully killing a bear, for which he fined Olsen $1,500, and of hunting over bait, for which he fined Olsen $300. In addition, Smith assessed Olsen with a $5,000 restitution penalty since the bear was considered “trophy-class,” which means that it exceeded a field-dressed weight of 350 pounds.

Olsen also stands to lose his hunting and trapping privileges for at least three years, according to a realease from the state Game Commission.

The case began in November when Luzerne County WCO Cory Bentzoni became suspicious when he saw a truck loaded with pastries traveling along Route 309 in Dallas.

“It was about one week from the opening of the statewide bear season, and I thought that something illegal might be underway,” Bentzoni said. “Being that we were so close to bear season, seeing that person drive by with an unusual amount of pastries was like watching an individual go down a row of parked vehicles testing each handle to see if it were would open. Something just didn’t seem right.

On Nov. 25, Olsen brought a bear with an estimated live weight of 707 pounds into the bear check station at the Northeast Region Office in Dallas. Rosa was immediately contacted by the Northeast Region Office, since Olsen reportedly harvested the bear in Noxen Township, Wyoming County.

**jcabin** · April 29th, 2010, 04:27 PM

LOL I remember this story. Glad that douche was brought to justice.

**tommy610** · April 29th, 2010, 05:05 PM

The case began in November when Luzerne County WCO Cory Bentzoni became suspicious when he saw a truck loaded with pastries traveling along Route 309 in Dallas.

It cracks me up when they don't dwell on the "what was that now?" part of the story.