Oregon poachers fined $15,000 for illegally shooting and killing 2 bear cubs

An Oregon mother and son have been fined $15,000, are barred from hunting for three years and will be on probation for 60 months after illegally shooting two bear cubs in October.

Gail Faye Freer, 52, and her son, Corey Douglas Loving II, 29, both of Siletz, were convicted of illegally killing bear cubs under 1 year old, according to a news release from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Loving and Freer were trespassing on private land when they spotted a bear cub wandering among blackberry bushes. Freer encouraged Loving to shoot the cub, which he did, the news release said.

Later, the two returned to retrieve the bear when they spotted a cub foraging in the same place, police said.

“Loving shot it, thinking it was the same bear,” the news release said. Loving and Freer eventually approached the bushes expecting to find a single bear cub with two gunshot wounds. Instead, they found two bear cubs, each with a fatal gunshot wound, the release said.

Both cubs had been left to waste.

Oregon State Police wildlife troopers located the carcasses after an anonymous call to Oregon’s Turn in Poachers tip line several days later. Troopers were unable to locate the mother bear, also known as a sow.

It is illegal to hunt bear cubs under 1 year old or sows with cubs less than 1 year old. Bear cubs usually stay with their mothers until they are about 18 months old, then they disperse and establish their own home range, the news release said. The cubs, which still had baby teeth, were only about 8 months old, according to ODFW District Wildlife biologist Jason Kirchner.

“There is no excuse for taking two 8-month-old bear cubs, plus the meat was not taken care of and went to waste,” Kirchner said. “This is a loss to Oregonians and to those who respect, value, enjoy, and manage our state’s wildlife resources.”

The the Turn In Poachers (TIP) Line is 1-800-452-7888 or TIP@osp.oregon.gov.

Zach Urness has been an outdoors reporter in Oregon for 15 years and is host of the Explore Oregon Podcast. Urness is the author of “Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon” and “Hiking Southern Oregon.” He can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or 503-399-6801. Find him on Twitter at @ZachsORoutdoors.

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Oregon poachers fined $15K for shooting, killing 2 bear cubs