Alberta Fish and Wildlife has just released details on its facebook site about an incident that occurred November 5, 2018 at Indian Graves, west of Chain Lakes.

They got a report about the illegal killing of a grizzly bear by two men.

The person who made the report had also allegedly been assaulted by the two men for taking pictures of them.

Officers found that just after midnight November 3, 2018, a grizzly bear approached the suspects’ meat pole structure, 50 yards from their hunting camp.

One of the hunters also set up a trail camera so they could identify what was coming in to feed on the carcasses.

After taking one carcass, the grizzly came back multiple times to attempt to reach the remaining carcass.

Fish and Wildlife officers say given the time of the year, the bear was motivated by food and preparing for hibernation.

Over a three hour period, two of the hunters focused their attention on the bear’s activity.

At about 10:28 p.m., the two men decided to shoot and kill the grizzly bear, while using the motion sensor spotlight to help see its body.

When the other campers asked why the shot was fired, the suspects told them that it was just a warning shot.

But the following morning, the witness who reported the incident to Fish and Wildlife officers found a dead grizzly bear near the meat pole site.

The witness started to collect evidence from his trail cameras and take photos of the grizzly bear and vehicles in the camp and when the suspects discovered the witness taking photos they assaulted him and tried to force him to give up his password by threatening him with an axe.

The other campers intervened and convinced the suspects to return his cellphone and let the witness go. Other campers from nearby camps also witnessed the assault.

When officers arrived at the hunting camp, they interviewed the suspects. One of them eventually confessed to his involvement in the shooting and killing of the grizzly bear. He took officers to where the carcass was dumped – in a drainage area covered up with branches in an attempt to conceal it.

Evidence collected through interviews, photos and video footage showed that the bear was not exhibiting any aggressive behaviour towards the men at any point. It also showed that neither of them made any attempts to scare the bear away or leave the area. Officers say there was no grounds for a self-defence shooting.

On January 6, 2020, Jeffrey Edison Hambrook plead guilty for hunting out of season, assault and uttering threats in relation to property. Gary Edgar Gilson also plead guilty to unlawful possession of wildlife, theft under $5,000 and uttering threats in relation to property.

Both men received a one-year conditional sentence and a three year hunting suspension. Both men were also fined a total of $22,000 for the killing of the bear and for unlawful possession of wildlife.

Anyone who witnesses, or has information on, any illegal or suspicious hunting or fishing activity or serious public land abuse is encouraged to call the 24-hour Report A Poacher line at 1-800-642-3800 or submitting a report online at https://www.alberta.ca/report-poacher.aspx.

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