Man finds illegally dumped carcasses

MAT-SU — Three dead beavers found at an illegal dump site off Rel Road in Houston have been stowed in an evidence freezer at the Alaska State Trooper's Fish and Wildlife protection office in Big Lake. The illegal dump site included dozens of small animal carcasses, but all but the beavers had been skinned. The site is along a side road that has served as a dumping ground for appliances, old cars, and even camper trailers.

According to Fish and Wildlife Protection officer Tom Akelkok, waste of game laws don't apply to the meat of animals primarily killed for their fur— only the beavers are evidence of a wildlife violation.

"(People) are not required to salvage the meat but they are required to salvage the hide," Akelkok said.

Local resident David Ion found the discarded carcasses in plastic bags, buckets, and boxes while he was out for a drive on the morning of May 17. Ion estimated there were between 30 and 50 carcasses.

"My lady and I were just traveling around," Ion said, "just be-bopping around the back roads when we came across it. She went home, she was pretty upset."

Ion returned with a camera to document what he found and report it to the authorities. He said the smell of the rotting carcasses wasn't the only disturbing thing about the dump site.

"If abuse like this continues unchecked," Ion said, "even if we do have hunting rights there won't be any animals left. That's the reason it upset me."

Officer Akelkok responded to Ion's call Thursday afternoon. Ions and Akelkok went to the site together and spent about 30 minutes looking for evidence of who might have dumped the carcasses.

"I unraveled the bags and found the three [beaver] carcasses with the hides still attached," Akelkok said. But the men found no mail or personal garbage where the discarded animal remains were, so Akelkok has no suspects at this time.

"I couldn't find any leads to indicate who had done it, and we dug through it pretty good," Akelkok said.

Akelkok said the only charges he could bring for the carcass dumping were littering and failure to salvage the hide of a fur animal.

Alaska laws allow fines of up to $300 for each of the three beaver hides, according to Palmer Assistant District Attorney Bob Collins. Collins said littering charges were possible, as were destruction of property charges if the dump is located on private land.

Large game animal offenses have mandatory jail time, according to Collins.