Published: Oct. 15, 2020 at 10:32 PM CDT
ARDMORE, Oklahoma (KXII) - An Ardmore man was arrested on Monday for selling taxidermized deer and elk back in January.
Love County game warden Royce Gillham arrested 49 year old Charles Strader for selling parts of Whitetail Deer, Mule Deer, and Elk.
“We got an anonymous tip in regards to him selling mounts on craigslist,” Gillham said.
Just one mounted elk head can run up to thousands of dollars.
“Antlers still connected to the skull ,” Gillham said.
According to Oklahoma law, it’s illegal to sell any part of an animal without a taxidermy license.
“It’s actually one of our oldest laws,” Gillham said. “In regards to the turn of the century, there were very limited resources.”
Gillham says in the early 20th century there were only about 500 deer in southeast Oklahoma.
“A big part of that was due to what is called commercial mount hunting and commercial meat hunting of wildlife,” Gillham said.
It was an easy way to make money, but a bad way to conserve wildlife.
“People would hunt, make mounts and then sell mounts for profit,” Gillham said. “Or hunt, take meat and sell that meat for profit to numerous people or resort cabins.”
The law still stands in the current Oklahoma statutes, so if Strader is convicted, he faces court fines and could even get his hunting license revoked.
Strader was released on a five hundred dollar bond, but Gillham says the investigation is still ongoing.
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