Animal protection organization offering $8,500 reward for information in cougar poaching case

Animal protection organization offering $8,500 reward for information in cougar poaching case
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A Canadian charity that focuses on animal protection is now offering an $8,500 reward for information relating to the poaching of two cougar kittens in the Lake Cowichan area.

The kittens’ remains were found on a remote logging road called Hill 60 Forest Service Road, off Highway 18 near Lake Cowichan last Tuesday, with conservation officers estimating they had been there for four days.

“Both of them had been shot, all of their paws had been removed and one of them was decapitated,” said Robin Sano with the BC Conservation Officer Service.

While the investigation into this incident continues, a local charity — The Fur-Bearers — has pulled together reward money in an effort to uncover the facts surrounding the poaching incident.

Last week, The Fur-Bearers offered a $1,000 reward for information, but that figure has climbed to $8,500 due to a growing number of upset residents across British Columbia.

After offering the reward last Friday, The Fur-Bearers organization was contacted by four individuals who wanted to donate to the reward amount in an effort to find answers.

The donors include $500 from E. Lefebvre, $1,000 from Ian Voermann, $5,000 from Kashtin Capozzi, and a $1,000 anonymous donation.

“We are overwhelmed by the response of these individuals and the thousands of others who have shared our reward information and coverage of this poaching case,” says Aaron Hofman, Director of Advocacy and Policy for The Fur-Bearers. “It is a heartwarming reminder that the majority of British Columbians admire and respect our wildlife and that we all agree there is no place for poaching in our communities.”

The Fur-Bearers, along with its new donors, are hoping that the reward money will help uncover information leading to the identification and conviction of the person(s) responsible for the illegal killing of the two cougar kittens.

The current total of $8,500 is the largest The Fur-Bearers have offered as a reward in the organization’s 70-year history.

Anyone with information related to this poaching case is encouraged to contact the Report All Poachers and Polluters Line at 1-877-952-727 or by using the online form at https://forms.gov.bc.ca/environment/rapp/.

In B.C. it is illegal to hunt cougars under a year old, and officials say there was no way these house cat-sized kittens could have been confused with a grown cat.

Graham CoxGraham Cox

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