Arkansas Man Accused of Big Buck Contest Fraud

A 27-year-old Arkansas man named Andrew Riels has been cited by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) for poaching a buck and then entering it into a big buck contest.

Louisiana officials first got a tip from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) Enforcement Division that Riels may have illegally harvested a 15-point buck near Crossett, Arkansas. The man allegedly shot the buck during “illegal hours” on September 8th, though it’s unclear if he committed any other violation.

The same day he killed the monster, he decided it would be a good idea to enter it into the Simmons Sporting Goods Big Buck Contest in Bastrop, Louisiana. This contest offers a grade prize of a $10,000 shopping spree at the sporting goods store, and Riels apparently thought his buck stood a chance of winning.

The buck scored 171 ⅛, according to a photo of Riels’ contest entry obtained by MeatEater. Simmons Sporting Goods hasn’t posted entries for all divisions yet, and officials haven’t said what weapon he claimed to have used to kill the deer. But 171 ⅛ would have been enough to win the Open Archery division and put him in the running for Crossbow and Primitive Weapon.

Riels is being charged with crimes related to hunting contest fraud as well as interstate commerce because he took the buck (or its rack, at least) across state lines. Hunting contest fraud brings up to a $3,000 fine and one year in jail. Violating interstate commerce regulations carries a $900 to $950 fine and up to 120 days in jail.

Louisiana hunters would like to see even greater penalties, but they’re skeptical Riels will even get the maximum.

“This is why people continue to break laws. What is max $3950 fines and you know he won’t serve jail time. Someone does something this stupid–take license and hunting rights. Done. If they do it once, they’ll do it again,” Zach Chauvin posted on Facebook.

Kevin Burge, another commenter on the LDWF Facebook post, said Riels should lose his hunting privileges for at least three years, but Nolan Bates doesn’t think Riels will even see a tenth of the maximum penalty.