The Ontario government is safeguarding people from unsafe hunting practices by ensuring people follow the regulations pertaining to road and night hunting.

Armenio Ferreira of Leamington pleaded guilty to hunting at night, careless hunting, having a loaded firearm in a vehicle and hunting big game without a licence. He was fined $10,000 and received a two-year hunting suspension.

Michael Cabral of Leamington pleaded guilty to hunting at night and careless hunting. He was fined $7,500 and was given a two-year hunting suspension.

Both men are also required to complete the Ontario Hunter Education Course before being able to purchase another hunting licence.

The court heard that on October 16, 2022, conservation officers conducted a deer decoy operation on Tri Lake Road near Nestor Falls, in the Kenora District of Ontario.

Approximately 30 minutes before legal hunting time, a vehicle attended the decoy location and illuminated the decoy with the vehicle headlights.

Both men exited the vehicle and discharged their high-powered rifles a total of seven times down the road at the decoy.

After the shooting had stopped, Ferreira placed his loaded firearm back in the vehicle.

Further investigation revealed that Ferreira had also harvested an antlerless deer in 2021 in the Nestor Falls area but had used a Wildlife Management Unit 7B tag that was only valid to be used for an antlerless deer harvested in the City of Kenora.

Justice of the Peace Daphne Armstrong heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Kenora, on January 15, 2025.

Image by svklimkin from Pixabay