The apple apparently doesn’t fall far from the corner-cutting tree in this family. According to the Reno Gazette Journal, a father and son from Wisconsin are in a White Pine County, Nevada jail and their hunting guide has been suspended for illegally taking an elk.
The three men were sentenced this week in District Court in Ely, according to the Nevada Department of Wildlife.
Edwin Singler, 55, of Shiocton, Wis., and Ryan Singler, 26, of New London, Wis., began serving their 10-day sentences immediately after sentencing and guide Tyler Brunson, 23, of McGill, lost his privileges for three years.
I wonder what mom thinks of her boys…and what they’ve done to the family bank account. The good news: she won’t have to worry about them doing anything wrong while hunting again any time soon.
In addition to 10 days of jail the Singler men received 270-day suspended sentences, a combined $15,000 in fines and penalties, 40 hours of community service, forfeited a rifle, scope and the elk, and lost hunting privileges for six years in Nevada and 46 other states that recognize a Nevada revocation.
“This is such a senseless crime,” said Scott Giles, the game warden who led the investigation in Nevada. “These individuals had a valid tag in that area, but because they felt the rules did not apply to them they wound up receiving some pretty steep fines and penalties.”
The investigation started in spring of 2016 when game wardens in Wisconsin contacted authorities in Nevada to report evidence they found in a separate investigation that suggested a possible illegal elk killing in Nevada.
“They ran across the possibility that Ryan Singler actually killed an elk in Nevada his father, Edwin, had the tag for,” Giles said.
The killing happened during guided hunt in near the Schell Creek Range scheduled for 10 days beginning November 25, 2015, according to the Nevada Department of Wildlife.
The area is known for producing large elk and guided hunts can cost several thousand dollars.
So they’d spent a bunch of money on the hunt and didn’t want to go away empty-handed.
According to Giles’ report on the case, the group spent three days in cold weather hunting but couldn’t find a suitable bull.
Based on an interview with Brunson, the report stated both Edwin and Ryan Singler were upset and complained about not hiking around as they did when hunting in Wisconsin.
According to the report, when the group did start hiking the Singlers complained about the altitude and Edwin Singler vomited.
Obviously, what happens in Vegas does not apply in all parts of Nevada.
Eventually, the group spotted an elk and gave chase. Neither Brunson nor another guide saw Ryan Singler shoot the elk but during the investigation Brunson told Giles that on the first day of the hunt Edwin Singler asked if it would be ok for Ryan Singler to shoot the bull and that it would “stay between everyone in the room,” Giles’ report stated.
Wisconsin authorities recovered further evidence including photos and messages in which Ryan Singler admitted he shot the elk despite not having drawn the tag.
Giles was able to confirm the location of the kill because photos recovered during the investigation showed Mt. Wheeler in the background.
It was nice of the Singlers to document their poaching activity so completely for the game warden, wasn’t it?
Authorities issued arrest warrants in April 2017 and the men pleaded guilty to the charges earlier this week.
Giles said the penalties show the importance of staying within the law when hunting in Nevada.
This could have been a great father son experience, Instead they decided to be poachers and it cost them both. Bigly.