3.5-Year Investigation Leads to Guilty Pleas from Men Who Poached Three Bull Elk, Black Bear and Trout

After grinding it out for nearly four years, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials finally have their men dead to rights in an egregious poaching case. Kicking off in August of 2021, FWP game wardens were pointed to a peculiar discovery at the Giant Springs fish hatchery display pond in Great Falls. Noting that a number of fish at the hatchery had been speared, officials kicked off an investigation that would turn into something much bigger than they had originally anticipated.

After finding a bunch of hatchery trout already deceased on the scene, FWP agents were also tasked with gathering up a number of other fish that had been badly injured by spears as well. The remaining fish that were still alive, but badly injured, ended up having to be euthanized by FWP staff members. 

Without any real leads at the time of the fish hatchery discovery, game wardens stayed on the case, waiting for a break. That break, although unbeknownst to them at the time, came on Sept. 19, 2021 when wardens were made aware of a headless bull elk found on a ranch near Cascade. Investigating officers found the bull elk fully intact and left to rot with only its antlers and jaw removed.

As wardens continued to investigate the abandoned bull elk carcass case, they uncovered three additional bull elk that had been illegally killed along with a black bear who had met the same fate. Now with four bulls and a bear on the ground, investigators went to the public pleading for more information regarding the crimes.

It took some time, but eventually the right tip surfaced and led wardens to two young men, both in their early twenties. After spending some time with their suspects, it didn’t take long for wardens to get a complete confession out of the two men. They soon admitted that they illegally killed the big game animals and had speared the trout at the hatchery earlier in the investigation.

Putting all of the puzzle pieces together, wardens came down hard on the poaching duo, later named as Richard Van Meter, 22, and Ty Robert Lewis, 21. The two men were convicted of unlawful possession of a game animal, unlawful possession of a game fish, waste of a game animal, waste of a game fish, and hunting without a valid license. Lewis paid $16,000 in fines and restitution, and Van Meter paid $8,000 in fines and restitution. Both men will also lose their hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for 20 years.

“This case took a few years, but thanks to the hard work of our game wardens, we are glad to finally wrap this case up,” said FWP Region 4 Warden Captain Dave Holland. “The sentences imposed by the court reflect the value of the resources taken by these two individuals, and especially the importance that the community places on the Giant Springs Hatchery.”