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2 men appear in court after using truck to drag live moose

dragging live moose Photo by Cindy Creighton/Shutterstock

No pleas have been entered for two men accused of shooting and dragging a live moose on Hwy. 637 in Killarney, Ontario.

Alphonse Donald Maiangowi, 73 and Gabriel Recollet-Jocko, 18, appeared at the Ontario Court of Justice in Sudbury on Feb. 26, 2020 to face a list of charges laid by the Ontario Provincial Police and Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. However, their case was delayed until March 25 and they are no longer in custody.

The two men from Wikwemikong First Nation were arrested and criminally charged by OPP back in December 2019 with causing unnecessary suffering to an animal and careless use of a firearm.

An 18-second video posted to YouTube by a witness shows a moose helplessly being dragged by its neck behind a pick-up truck on a road. The animal later died after it was shot again.

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An OPP spokesperson confirmed the incident was first reported to the Nipissing West detachment on Sept. 28, 2019, and a joint investigation was then launched between the OPP, MNRF and the Wikwemikong Tribal Police.

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In addition to the criminal charges, the two also face charges from the MNRF under the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act including using a vehicle to hunt or injure wildlife and using a firearm carelessly to hunt.

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