News Release

4 charged with poaching deer

November 3, 2009
Contact: Joy Hill, 352-732-1225 or 352-258-3426

After a lengthy investigation by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) officers, the state attorney's office for St. Johns County recently charged four local men with illegally killing deer, including a spotted fawn. The investigation began early this year, and charges stem from alleged nighttime poaching activity that occurred throughout the late spring, summer and fall of 2008.

"The defendants drove around at night on roads in numerous locations in St. Johns County, shining bright lights into the eyes of the deer standing by the side of the road," said Lt. Ben Allen, the FWC's inland supervisor for St. Johns County. "The deer were temporarily blinded by the light and were easy targets for the men to shoot."

He added that some deer died instantly, while others were only injured and ran off and died later. Sometimes the men picked up the carcasses; other times they left them to rot, officers said.

The state attorney's office filed charges against the following individuals as indicated below:

• Tyler A. Pellicer (DOB/11/16/88) of 2761 Race Track Road, St. Augustine: five counts of taking deer at night with gun and light, one count of taking spotted fawn;
• Raymond A. Schmidt (DOB 11/20/88) of 5110 CR 208, St. Augustine: two counts of taking deer at night with gun and light;
• Michael-Scott Bradley Free (DOB 05/14/86) of 150 Calle El Jardin, Unit 201, St. Augustine: two counts of taking deer at night with gun and light;
• Chad Brunner (DOB 10/13/87) of 8150 Morrison Road, Hasting: one count of taking deer at night with gun and light, one count of taking spotted fawn.

It all began last January when an anonymous person called the FWC's Wildlife Alert Hotline. The caller told the dispatcher that Tyler A. Pellicer and a couple of others were illegally killing deer in the DuPont Center Hunt Club in St. Johns County.  The caller also said Pellicer had killed a spotted fawn at night sometime around June or July of 2008.

FWC Officer Rich Wilcox was assigned the case and headed to the hunt club off County Road 206 and U.S. Highway 1. He drove the roads in the hunt club until just after 11 p.m. but found no sign of illegal activity. However, he had learned that Pellicer had a prior violation of hunting without a license and was a suspect in another recent nighttime poaching case. Wilcox signed off for the night but wasn't finished with the case.

As is typical of deer-poaching cases, this situation was complicated and involved a number of people. It took Wilcox about a month to track down leads and interview suspects and witnesses. By the time he was ready to wrap up his investigation, he had interviewed more than 20 people, including 11 potential suspects.

Wilcox reported his findings to the state attorney and made recommendations that several people be charged for killing deer at night with guns and lights.

Anyone with information about illegal hunting or other violations involving fish and wildlife should call the FWC's Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-3922 right away. Callers may remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward if their information leads to an arrest. The phone line is open 24 hours a day.