Not such a great area for tribal members either. Thanks for the insight Osky, that's an angle i hadn't thought about and makes sense

No sadly it's really not Steven. Makes me sad when in town there I drive by the biggest building on the Rez which is the correctional facility.

Osky

I have some first hand knowledge of this story.

When the pics first hit facebook, I tracked down Brett's contact information and told him I would like to write a story on his bear and hunt for Bear Hunting magazine and he was very cooperative. I asked him if he would be interested in doing an interview and we set up a time for later that week (this was early september). I called Clay the owner of Bear Hunting Magazine and he was all over the idea of doing the story on a bear that was reported to be the new Minnesota state record and weighed over 800 pounds live weight.

In the first phone call, Brett told me that he shot the bear on opening day over bait he put out himself. Shot it at 8:00 am and he had passed a 350-pounder just before he shot this one! He also said that he had only put out the bait the previous day. By listening to the story of his hunt unfold, it was clear what he was saying goes against what I know to be good tactics for killing big bears. I thought this was going to be a really cool story because of the crazy way he says he hunted the bear. He told me the bear was shot in the no-quota zone near Bemidji. He also said the bear weighed 729 pounds dressed and a little over 800 pounds live weight. In the second interview, I was going to ask how he got the bear out and where it was weighed. He sent me several photos of the bear including the one you see in the newspaper articles, which I still have.

The following day, I was sent a rap sheet for the guy and told that the DNR was investigating. It was sent to me by an ex sister in law who told me this guy tried to kill her sister and spent jail time for it. Then he did a radio interview in which he told the interviewer some things which conflicted with what he had told me including where the bear was shot. I called Clay back and told him let's hold off and see how this develops. Within one more day, I started to smell a rat and decided not to call him back for the second interview.

Then the photos were taken down off of facebook and I got further information that he was being investigated by the DNR.

Turns out the story was actually entirely fabricated. The bear was never even field dressed or weighed. As you can see by reading the newspaper reports, the whole works was a lie. He's in a world of hurt legally. And yes Osky, there is more to the story that I believe will come out. I can't say more because I don't know anything I can prove, but here's something to think about: Who took the photos of him with the bear?

on a happier note they killed a couple 800 pounders in pa this year and do every year.

sad but all too common story anymore Bernie

i dont have a problem with game laws. to a point. here in ks the price of a deer tag was raised to 52 dollars. sure makes hunting for food seem less likely. seems like the bear killer was either incredibly stupid or thought he was in compliance with the law. these big penis contests, i mean big antler competitions i mean biggest skull contests are going to cause A LOT more problems as time goes on.

There is absolutely NO CHANCE he thought he was in compliance with the law.

no doubt danny,i shot a dandy buck saturday and my 20 yr old said he was gonna steal it and take it to the big buck contest.he was told his cushy life in my basement would end if he did that.--deer aint moved.

He shot it opening day with a legal weapon. Is it possible that a "buddy" told him it was legal to hunt there and an honest mistake? Something about this just doesn't add up.

I do not believe there was any mistake. This guy knew exactly what he was doing. There are no big game maps or illustrations that sho that Rez as open hunting for bears, nor is there a way when buying your license that you can post that Rez as your hunting zone.
Taking the skull and paws only? No big game hunter in Minnesota thinks that alone is allowed.
People hunting bears for skulls. That is a very very tricky thing to do here successfully trophy wise. Very few can make that call ahead of time and most of those who can are very good with cameras, patience, and proximity.
Bears have a prime point in life for bone structure after which like us it deteriorates. Also genetics are involved. I have seen hunters shoot, and I have shot, some incredibly big bears that would not make book via skull size. It is what it is and very tough to judge on the hoof (paw) as they say.

Osky

Previous convictions of illegal taking, posting take on FB, too lazy to skin it out..........we can at least agree the guy is dumb and lazy!
mt

There is absolutely NO CHANCE he thought he was in compliance with the law. [/quote]

He shot it opening day with a legal weapon. Is it possible that a "buddy" told him it was legal to hunt there and an honest mistake? Something about this just doesn't add up.
[/quote]

No chance whatsoever. Plus he didn't have a tag for that area if he had a tag at all. Totally illegal to hunt there.

Good to know. This is the first I have heard about it and wondered if things were exaggerated. I guess not.

Crystal Ball lol....

There is absolutely NO CHANCE he thought he was in compliance with the law. [/quote]
Crystal Ball lol.... [/quote]

It's impossible to hunt there legally you cannot even buy a tag for it. You don't need a crystal ball to know his intentions. All you need is a basic understanding of how bear hunting works in Minnesota.

Crystal Ball lol.... [/quote]

It's impossible to hunt there legally you cannot even buy a tag for it. You don't need a crystal ball to know his intentions. All you need is a basic understanding of how bear hunting works in Minnesota. [/quote]
Oh, so you were there first hand and know for sure that this fella is a bad man, you know, before he is convicted in a court of law. You take the pic?

Too bad there are enough of those type of outdoors person that each state or region has one or more, like having your own town drunk.

Bryce

That's the truth, Bryce. I just read through a few of the warden reports, and there were chock full of poachers killing deer and not registering them, or illegally filling tags for other people, or shooting/shining from roads.

I take offense to the news source calling this guy a hunter. Gives us all a bad name.

Bernie is correct. You do not go on the populated side of that Rez by mistake nor do you make any mistakes while there. The only exception being coming up from midji to the casino and leave the same way. Deeper into that Rez is pretty much like Beana in the old days on whiskey night. Not good.

Osky

Like heck he is. He just thinks he is. If this fella was found guilty in a court of law, by his peers, then maybe you judgmental people would have a leg to stand on. We have a big enough fight on our hands with the anti's, we don't need our own condemning someone because of a article that was most likely printed by a anti. Y'all need to quit eating your own imo.

Your theory that some residents of the reservation sold the suspect the hunt seems very likely. I wonder whether the suspect thought he was legal if some tribal members did give him their permission and assist him?

Keith