By Claire Piech .
Three men were arrested on the Sea to Sky Highway last week after RCMP found two dead female deer in the back of their van, along with two loaded rifles.
Sea to Sky Regional Police Services pulled the van over near Pemberton on June 14 th at 2 a.m. while conducting a road check for impaired drivers.
According to conservation officer Chris Doyle, one deer was pregnant with twin fawns and the other is believed to have left a fawn behind.
“We don’t know how long they were dead for, because the case is still under investigation. But it is believed they were shot that night,” said Doyle.
Doyle added that police suspect the deer were killed near the Pemberton Meadows area.
The men, from Richmond, face charges of careless use of firearms and unlawful possession of dead wildlife and are scheduled to appear in court in August.
Deer hunting season begins in September, with hunters requiring a hunting license. Female deer, however, can never legally be hunted.
According to Doyle, the maximum penalty for violating the Wildlife Act is a fine of up to $50,000 or six months in jail.
“We usually deal with a few cases of violation of deer hunting each year. However, they are more common during hunting season,” said Doyle.
The names of the men have not been released.
Anyone in the Pemberton area with more information is asked to contact the RCMP or Conservation Office.
Beyond poaching, RCMP officers in the Whistler Pemberton area continued to be busy throughout the weekend, responding to 58 calls for service.
These responses included four noise complaints, three cases of people drunk in public, instances of causing a disturbance, five impaired driving calls, one collision, two driving complaints, and nine reports of theft.
The RCMP is reminding everyone in the area to make sure to lock their vehicles and remove all valuables before parking.
