A case of illegal Bison Hunting led to an arrest recently in the RM of Russel-Binscarth.
On October 14th, around 1:55 pm, Russell RCMP received a report of 6 bison having been shot and removed from a farm property.
The owner of the property that housed the bison reported that the locks on his pasture gates had been replaced with some that didn't belong to him, and that 6 bison were indeed missing.
A review of nearby trail cams saw four trespassers, who drove in with a pickup and several off-road vehicles, had shot the bison and removed them from the property.
The next day, RCMP were notified of an ad to hunt bison for $1000 a head on this location, but it was not posted by the owner.
Officers reached the people that hunted the Bison, who were under the impression that the operation was legitimate, and their cooperation resulted in an arrest.
On October 16, Russell RCMP issued a Warrant of Arrest out for Gerald Sean Gebler, 52, from Portage la Prairie, who was charged with Theft over $5000 and Mischief over $5000 in relation to this incident.
Later that day, Gebler turned himself in to the Portage la Prairie RCMP where he was later released for court scheduled for January 22, 2025, in Russell.
Additional charges are likely.
