Scott Swanson
Mark Lindquist of Sweet Home has been hunting for four-plus decades, but what happened to him on the final day of deer rifle season was a new one – and one of the more negative experiences he’s had in the sport.
Lindquist, 55, was hunting on the morning of Nov. 2 on Frank Timber land near the intersection of Berlin and Bellinger Scale roads.
His wife had gotten a buck earlier in the season in another location, but thus far Lindquist had had no success, other than spotting a couple of bucks that he hadn’t been able to shoot. For someone who says he has generally been successful over the years, it was getting frustrating.
“I was in there, trying to fill my tag on the last day of deer season and I saw two bucks, both of them forkhorns,” he said. “I shot the biggest one and I was tickled to death that I got one, on the last day.”
Lindquist said he gutted and tagged the deer, then took some photos – his normal procedure. Then he hiked out to his truck, about two miles away, to get a buck cart.
“I’m getting a little older now, so I use a cart to haul them out,” he said.
Upon arriving back at the spot where he shot the deer two hours later, about 10 a.m., he found nothing but a gut pile and some drag marks leading to a neighboring private property.
“I’m just sick about it,” Lindquist said. “How could somebody do that? It’s so unsportsmanlike. That guy was totally wrong.”
Lindquist called the Oregon State Police, which dispatched two officers. By the time they had arrived and investigated, it was nightfall.
Lindquist said there were few other hunters in the area that day.
“The only shot I heard all day was mine. I think someone was in there hunting and ran across it, knowing it was the last day,” he said. “He took my tag because he still had his tag to fill. He could get another deer himself.”
Oregon State Police Officer Kurt Burkholder said the investigation into the incident is ongoing.
“This is not super common, but it does happen once in a while,” he said.
He said anyone who has information to share should contact Burkholder at (541) 974-7114 or call the OSP’s tip line at 1-800-452-7888 or e-mail [email protected]. A $250 reward is being offered by the Oregon Hunters Association for information leading to an arrest or conviction. When reporting a violation, advise the trooper of your interest in requesting the reward. TIPs can remain anonymous.
Lindquist is hoping somebody who knows what happened will have a qualm of conscience and turn in the thief, who stole his tag too, which is another concern.
“He’s still got my tag,” Lindquist said. “It’s not like I gutted it and left it with no tag on it. It was punched out. He’s got all my preference points.
“I’ve hunted for 45 years and I would never dream of doing something like that. Like one of the cops said, whoever did it deserves to get caught.
“I used all my skills as a hunter to get that buck and then somebody steals it.”