quote:

Originally posted by justanotherhunter:
Millard County case is set for preliminary hearing on 11/2 at 1:30 pm.

Carbon County case was set for preliminary hearing on 10/19 at 1:30 pm. I haven't bothered to check into how that went.

I didn't have any luck with the Carbon County courts. Should you learn of anything, please let us know.

AS a side note, his son weas severely injured in a freak accident in a softball game. He has some permanent injuries. I'll leave it at that.

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:

quote:

Originally posted by justanotherhunter:
Millard County case is set for preliminary hearing on 11/2 at 1:30 pm.

Carbon County case was set for preliminary hearing on 10/19 at 1:30 pm. I haven't bothered to check into how that went.

I didn't have any luck with the Carbon County courts. Should you learn of anything, please let us know.

AS a side note, his son weas severely injured in a freak accident in a softball game. He has some permanent injuries. I'll leave it at that.

That's unfortunate to hear about his son.

As for the Carbon County case, the judge determined there was probable cause to move the case forward to trial.

Any update on this?

Only that we’re all non-binary

https://www.justice.gov/enrd/p...ile/1566426/download


United States v. Wade Lemon, et al., No. 4:22-CR-00122 (D. Utah), AU~ Ruth
Hackerd-Peer and ~U~ Ben Willoughby.

On November 2. 2022. prosecutors filed an indictment charging Wade Lemon and
Kasey Yardley with conspiracy, violating the Lacey Act. and Utah state regulations for
participating in il legal cougar hunts (18 U.S.C. § 371. 2; 16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a)(l )(A). (a)(2)
(A). 3373(d)(l )(B)).

Lemon worked as a licensed big game outfitter and offered services in Utah. Yardley
worked for Lemon as a cougar hunting guide and houndsman. Lemon sold guiding services
for cougar hunts for between $5,000 and $7,000 per hunt with Yardley often leading as
houndsmen.
Utah strictly regulates the means by which cougars may be lawfully captured. killed.
or collected. For example. Utah law prohibits the practice of "canned" hunts. Canned hunts
are defined as "when a cougar is treed. cornered. held at bay or its ability to escape is
otherwise restricted to allow a person who was not a member of the initial hunting party to
arrive and take the cougar." Utah law also requires that a hunter participate in a hunt from
start to finish if using dogs to pursue a cougar.

Between November 2020 through March 2021. defendants provided illegal guiding
services by, among other things: conducting "canned hunts" on Bureau of Land
Management (SLM) land; conducting hunts on SLM land without proper permits;
conducting hunts for out-of-state hunters; and facilitating the transportation of an illegally
caught cougar pelt out of the state.
The Utah Attorney General's Office and the U.S. Forest Service conducted the
investigation.

That sounds like new charges. Federal this time.

Anyone have an update?

Anyone have an update on this?

Not a thing. With Utah, it does not surprise me.

Why are certain individuals here so worried about this stuff? And want everyone else to spoon feed them information. Bizarre.

quote:

Originally posted by Chuck Nelson:
Why are certain individuals here so worried about this stuff? And want everyone else to spoon feed them information. Bizarre.

If you are referring to me, it’s be because I have known Wade for over 30 years. I am interested in what is happening.

I ask because I have found nothing of late. I thought that perhaps someone might know something I did not find.

You’ve known Wade for 30 years and can’t call and ask him direct?

quote:

Originally posted by 505 gibbs:
You’ve known Wade for 30 years and can’t call and ask him direct?

In my opinion that would be incredibly rude to do so.

quote:

Originally posted by 505 gibbs:
You’ve known Wade for 30 years and can’t call and ask him direct?

You don't get invited to many things do you?

quote:

In my opinion that would be incredibly rude to do so.

You think he or his family would rather see someone they’ve known for 30 years inquiring/gossiping about it on line?

quote:

You don't get invited to many things do you?

I’m actually going to a sizeable bash tonight where I am the guest of honor. But no, I don’t.

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:

quote:

Originally posted by Chuck Nelson:
Why are certain individuals here so worried about this stuff? And want everyone else to spoon feed them information. Bizarre.

If you are referring to me, it’s be because I have known Wade for over 30 years. I am interested in what is happening.

I ask because I have found nothing of late. I thought that perhaps someone might know something I did not find.

Ask him then. If you know him so well. If I knew someone for that long I most certainly wouldn’t be making a scene about him online.

quote:

Originally posted by Chuck Nelson:

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:

quote:

Originally posted by Chuck Nelson:
Why are certain individuals here so worried about this stuff? And want everyone else to spoon feed them information. Bizarre.

If you are referring to me, it’s be because I have known Wade for over 30 years. I am interested in what is happening.

I ask because I have found nothing of late. I thought that perhaps someone might know something I did not find.

Ask him then. If you know him so well. If I knew someone for that long I most certainly wouldn’t be making a scene about him online.

If making an inquiry about a new article posted by someone else is a “scene”, we have a different connotation.

Doesn’t take much today that if you’re successful, someone might be envious and call Game department and shit show starts
Hearsay is one of the worst culprits in so called game violations
Not that I would defend anyone, just a caution for us hunters…don’t put your stuff on FB or any other public displays bc someone might accuse you of something inappropriate and then it will cost you dearly
And I’m not trying to defend game violators
Just a cautionary tale as states have unlimited resources, we don’t

quote:

Originally posted by Bivoj:
Doesn’t take much today that if you’re successful, someone might be envious and call Game department and shit show starts
Hearsay is one of the worst culprits in so called game violations
Not that I would defend anyone, just a caution for us hunters…don’t put your stuff on FB or any other public displays bc someone might accuse you of something inappropriate and then it will cost you dearly
And I’m not trying to defend game violators
Just a cautionary tale as states have unlimited resources, we don’t

I think you are correct. I had a situation at my ranch.

The neighbor to the south had a guest who was involved in a custody battle with his ex. She reported some alleged violations. The neighbor to the north definitely violated the gator hunting law. I was in the middle .

They set up a massive sting on me . They found nothing .

All started by an angry ex wife .

Here's an update on Wade Lemon's cougar case. Guilty.
https://www.abc4.com/news/sout...mountain-lion-hunts/

https://www.justice.gov/usao-ut

PRESS RELEASE
Two Southern Utah Men Sentenced in Cougar Hunting Crime in Violation of the Lacey Act
Monday, July 22, 2024

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Utah

Big game outfitter cheated, cougar hunts were canned

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – A U.S. District Court Judge sentenced the final defendant today in a crime that involved a Utah licensed big game outfitter and his employee/cougar hunting guide in the District of Utah. The two defendants were sentenced separately for their involvement in a crime that defrauded hunters by leading canned hunts for commercial gain, in violation of the Lacey Act.

Wade Lemon, 63, of Holden, Utah, was sentenced July 18, 2024, to two months’ imprisonment, ordered by the court to pay a $10,500 fine, and a one-year commercial ban on federal land. According to court documents, and statements made during his change of plea hearing, Lemon admitted to illegally participating in “canned” mountain lion hunts on January 24, 2021 and December 15, 2020 on Federal BLM and National Forest Service land. Utah law prohibits “canned hunts” of mountain lions. A canned hunt means that a cougar is treed, cornered, held at bay or its ability to escape is otherwise restricted to allow a person who was not a member of the initial hunting party to arrive and take the cougar. The federal Lacey Act prohibits selling in interstate commerce any wildlife taken or sold in violation of state law. The Lacey Act defines the “sale” of wildlife to include providing guiding or outfitting services.

Lemon owns and operates Wade Lemon Hunting based in Holden, Utah. Lemon advertises his business on his website and boasts nearly 100% success rates yearly. However, Lemon has cheated in illegal canned cougar hunts and has defrauded hunters.

Kacey Alan Yardley, 47, of Enoch, Utah, was sentenced July 22, 2024, to six months’ bench probation, after he pleaded guilty to his involvement in an illegal canned cougar hunt with Lemon. As part of his probationary terms, Yardley is banned from federal land for commercial purposes. According to court documents, and statements made at his change of plea hearing, Yardley worked for Lemon as a cougar hunting guide and houndsman. On December 15, 2020, while on the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land, Yardley admitted that during a canned hunt, a cougar was held at bay and its ability to escape was otherwise restricted to allow a hunter who was not a member of the initial hunting party to arrive and attempt to take the cougar.

“This is a unique and important case because hunting is an important part of Utah’s culture,” said U.S. Attorney Trina A. Higgins of the District of Utah. “Canned hunts are illegal because they create an unfair advantage and can lead to inhumane treatment of the animals. It is also unfair to hunters who paid thousands of dollars for a guide and had no idea that they were participating in a canned hunt. My office and our law enforcement partners take these crimes seriously because they negatively impact our state and the hunting community.”

“The Forest Service issues special use permits to many outfitters and guides who provide a valuable service to the public. This case was important to help ensure the legitimacy of permitted services,” said Fishlake Forest Supervisor Mike Elson.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Forest Service and the Utah Attorney General’s Office.

Assistant United States Attorney Ruth Hackford-Peer and Special Assistant United States Attorney Ben Willoughby of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah prosecuted the case.

Contact
Felicia Martinez
Public Affairs Specialist
Felicia.martinez@usdoj.gov
(801) 325-3237
USAO-UT | Facebook | X | YouTube| Linkedin|

Updated July 22, 2024

I hear that there was a plea deal which was less punative. The judge refused to accept it.

There is a state charge trial coming soon I am told .

Nor defending anyone or accusing anyone
Outfitters are under lots of pressure to have succes and Game depts and FS have tendencies to to turn everything into a fiasco and a nightmare of gigantic proportions
They are after all government agencies run by non hunters
Law and order needs to be followed but there is limits to everything…

Those who investigated and submitted the charges are hunters too, along with most of the people who are in leadership positions.

https://www.sltrib.com/artsliv...mp-jrs-utah-hunting/


Here’s why Trump Jr.’s Utah hunting guide is headed to jail before his trial

It might be tough to seat a jury, a defense attorney for Wade Lemon says, given the fame of hunting client Trump Jr., who is not accused of any wrongdoing.


By Eric S. Peterson | The Utah Investigative Journalism Project
| Sep. 20, 2024, 7:00 a.m.
| Updated: 11:45 a.m.



Editor’s note • The following story was reported by The Utah Investigative Journalism Project in partnership with The Salt Lake Tribune.

Influential hunting guide Wade Lemon, celebrated for drawing “literally tens of millions of dollars” into Utah’s rural communities and efforts to conserve game herds, was ordered to report this week to a federal prison.

The longtime owner of Wade Lemon Hunting in Holden admitted his oversight “fell short” in two staged hunts — where paying clients were called in after mountain lions had already been tracked and located. In a deal with prosecutors, Lemon, 63, pleaded guilty to a federal misdemeanor and an infraction for illegal hunts in 2020 and 2021.



But Lemon wants to go to trial in state court, his attorney says, to fight a higher-profile felony charge — which stems from a 2018 hunt in which Donald Trump Jr. bagged a bear and a cougar in two days.

That state case, which was filed in Carbon County and made national headlines, has been delayed nine times while Lemon awaited the outcome of the federal prosecution. The 2018 hunt was part of the inauguration of a conservative, sportsmen-themed political group called Hunter Nation.


Defense attorney Greg Law confirmed before 4th District Judge Brian Bolinder that Lemon wants a trial on the 3rd-degree felony charge of wanton destruction of protected wildlife. Charging documents allege Lemon used illegal bait — “a pile of grain, oil and pastries” — to lure the black bear that Trump Jr. later shot.

Attorneys in the case did not mention Trump Jr. by name at the Aug. 19 hearing, but commented that special care might need to be taken in the trial. Law noted that the unnamed hunting client was a potential witness, but said he wanted to discuss with the judge separately if he needed to be called.

“I guess you could say he’s famous,” Law said. At another point, he said it might be a challenge to seat a jury for the trial.

“One of the parties involved has got some significant political connections, especially dealing with the upcoming election,” Law said. “I think we might need to send out a significant number of jury questionnaires in an effort to try to bring in a panel we could seat the jury from.”

Republican Utah voted for Trump in 2016 and 2020. Bolinder scheduled jury selection to begin on Feb. 10.


But first, court records show, Lemon was given permission to self-surrender Wednesday at the Federal Correctional Complex in Florence, Colorado, to start a two-month sentence for the separate mountain lion hunts he conceded were illegal. He’s also banned for one year from commercial hunts on federal land.

Lemon “employs, and over the years has employed, many younger men as houndsmen and sub guides,” prosecutors said while arguing for incarceration. His “leadership led these men to cheat as well. Wade Lemon created a culture of unlawfulness.”

Arguing against such punishment, Lemon’s lawyers described him as a descendant of Utah homesteaders who has “toiled tirelessly” with his family to become a nationally known outfitter, with no criminal background “but with a history of good deeds.”

Lemon is the first of two prominent Utah guides currently being prosecuted for alleged wildlife violations. Kane County Commissioner Wade Heaton, a former Utah Wildlife Board member, is facing felony charges for his alleged pattern of baiting big game.

‘Still in church’

Lemon, who specializes in big game hunts for bear and cougars, boasts on his website of a “nearly 100%” success rate for his mountain lion hunts.



However, prosecutors argued in federal court, “what the website does not mention is that Wade Lemon has been cheating. His cougar hunts were canned. The defendant was breaking the law.”

Two separate cases against Lemon were filed in state and federal courts in 2022.

A witness had met with state investigators in January 2021 in Meadow Canyon in Millard County and showed them a mountain lion track. Over two phone calls, court documents said, the witness asked Lemon if he had a hunting client ready; Lemon said yes and told him to release his dogs to find the cougar; and the witness reported to Lemon that he had it treed.

When dogs are used in the pursuit of a cougar, prosecutors explained, the licensed hunter who intends to take it “must be present” when the dogs are released “and must continuously participate in the hunt thereafter.”

Lemon arrived with a group on ATVs who walked to the cougar, which the client shot, prosecutors said. This hunter, identified only as Hunter #2, and Lemon “were on the mountain for only 37 minutes before the hunt was over,” prosecutors later wrote, “because the mountain lion had been caught while Hunter #2 was still in church in Sandy.”



This case was filed in state court in Millard County, but it was later dismissed and refiled in federal court along with allegations related to an earlier hunt. In December 2020, prosecutors charged, Lemon defrauded another hunting client on Bureau of Land Management land near Sulphurdale in Beaver County.

Dogs located and trapped a mountain lion, which had crouched in a small cave for hours before the client was called out, court documents said. Duped into thinking it was found right when he arrived, the man shot at it but it retreated further back into the cave and successfully evaded the men, prosecutors wrote.


Lemon would charge between $5,000 and $7,000 for cougar hunts, according to prosecutors. “Legal mountain lion hunts can involve risk and long days with uncertainty,” they wrote. “‘Canned hunts’ are much more profitable.”

When a hunter was brought close to the site of a trapped lion, Lemon would release more dogs to follow the trail “just for effect,” according to the November 2022 federal indictment, which had three counts.

An updated document later accused Lemon of five counts related to violations of the Lacey Act, which makes it illegal for anyone to engage in interstate commerce in regards to wildlife taken in violation of state law. In these cases, the hunters came from Utah and Texas, and a cougar pelt was shipped to a taxidermist in Montana and then sent back to Utah.



In April, though, prosecutors agreed to dismiss that broader indictment and filed a new document charging Lemon with one misdemeanor count of violating the Lacey Act, related to the cougar killed in January 2021, and one infraction for improperly using dogs in the December 2020 hunt.

In a statement filed with his guilty plea to those counts, Lemon admitted he “knowingly engaged” in the two canned hunts.

‘Good men must face the consequences’

Davis County prosecutor Ben Willoughby, who was assigned to handle both the state and federal charges against Lemon, said he could not comment on the still-pending case in Carbon County involving Trump Jr.

But he stressed that people need to understand that the hunters in the federal cases are victims. “These hunters were tricked; they really are the victims of fraud,” Willoughby said. “They think they are going to go on a hunt but the hunt already happened before they even get there.”

In statements to the court, Lemon’s friends pointed to his support of veterans and work with charities.


Don Peay, a longtime GOP donor and powerful champion of hunting-related causes on Utah’s Capitol Hill, said Lemon “has been hands down, the most generous in contributing money, effort, and energy to make [Utah] lands and wildlife better and more abundant across the entire state.”


Lemon and his family “have brought literally tens of millions of dollars into Utah to conserve wildlife habitat and game herds. They have also brought in equal amounts of revenue into Utah rural economies,” added Peay, founder of Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, which raises money for state conservation projects by auctioning off Utah hunting permits at an annual expo.

Lemon’s lawyers also argued the prosecution alone — which threatens the reputation and even existence of his business — was punishment enough.

“The small, tight-knit community of outfitters is well aware of the charges that were filed,” they wrote. “So, too, are prospective clients looking for big-game hunts. Wade Lemon and his company have lost potential clients, and the financial effects continue to mount.”

Willoughby said U.S. District Judge Dustin Pead took into consideration Lemon’s age, his lack of criminal history, and the evidence presented “about what a good man he is, a good father, good neighbor and good community member in Holden.” But, Willoughby added, “Judge Pead reminded him that ‘good men must face the consequences for criminal acts, too.’”


Pead sentenced Lemon to serve two months in jail, which was less than the three months sought by the prosecution. He also ordered Lemon to pay a $10,500 fine and to comply with a one-year commercial ban from guiding on federal lands.

A cougar hunting guide and houndsman who worked for Lemon pleaded guilty to assisting with the December 2020 canned hunt. Kacey Alan Yardley, 47, of Enoch, was sentenced in July to six months of probation.

Past investigations

Lemon’s hunting business has been repeatedly investigated by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.



On Sept. 3, 2020, The Utah Investigative Journalism Project requested files on closed investigations against Wade Lemon Hunting. The Utah Department of Natural Resources provided information on cases dating back to 2009 — except for the case on the 2018 Trump Jr. hunt.

DNR had decided to reopen it and denied the records request, stating a release would interfere with the now “open” investigation. That case was initially handled by the Utah attorney general’s office.


However, Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes has close ties to former President Donald Trump, the father of Trump Jr. Reyes campaigned for Trump and flew to Nevada to investigate election results after his 2020 defeat. Reyes’ entire office declared a conflict and handed off the investigations of all the hunts to the Davis County attorney’s office, which led to Willoughby’s assignment to prosecute them.

Lemon was contacted in 2022 by The Utah Investigative Journalism Project about the hunt with Trump Jr. and commented, “As far as I knew, everything was aboveboard,” before quickly ending the call.

According to charging documents in that case, illegal bait of “a pile of grain, oil and pastries” was discovered with a trail camera pointed right at it. The camera had “WLH” (for Wade Lemon Hunting) written on its side and Lemon’s own telephone number on it, according to court documents.

In 2009, DWR officer Hal Stout reported that on a hunt near Nine Mile Canyon in Carbon County, Lemon’s employees had treed a bear by building a fire at the base of it so the bear wouldn’t escape while they tried to rush a hunter to the spot. He reported that they were there so long that some of Lemon’s employees built a chair out of rocks for Lemon to sit on while they waited for the hunter.

No charges were filed after that investigation.



Lemon was also investigated for an alleged “canned hunt” involving a cougar in 2011, which also did not result in charges. And in 2016, he was investigated for allegedly taking a Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep from an off-limits area on Mount Nebo. That case was dismissed because DWR had not updated its guidebooks and a DWR employee had given Lemon confirmation that he could lead a guided hunt on the mountain.

Sad to hear . He pleaded guilty. It is hard to defend his actions . I have hunted many times . It is disappointing.

Article in the NRA magazine about this as well.

Wade did post here several years ago under an odd name, not sure what it was.

No one EVER gains by cheating.

Someday, they will pay it all back.
This goes with hunting too.

George

How many who hunted with him knew he was crooked? How many ignored the signs? He put an indelible mark on everyone who hunted with him. Any chance this case was his first foray into crime?

quote:

Originally posted by Navaluk:
How many who hunted with him knew he was crooked? How many ignored the signs? He put an indelible mark on everyone who hunted with him. Any chance this case was his first foray into crime?

I hunted with him several times for a variety of animals . I never saw the slightest hint of anything like this . In fact , I saw just the opposite . For example, when I hunted mountain lion , I left my license in the truck. I was not allowed to shoot until I retrieved my license. My first attempt at the mountain lion was not successful.

Wade Lemon has an extensive history of "potential" violations with the Utah DWR. He has been investigated many times and has usually struck a "deal" with the state to avoid charges. One of the more famous cases involved harvesting (guiding) a bighorn sheep in a closed unit.
This time was different, and it was other hunters / guides who turned him in. There appears to be another State case moving forward so he is not done with the courts yet.
Bill

Game laws can be so incredibly tight that you can be walking the line crossing it here and there fairly easy without doing any harm
Anyway, not defending anyone just stating facts
And states nd Feds have unlimited financial means to run you into a ground if they choose so

quote:

Originally posted by M.Shy:
Game laws can be so incredibly tight that you can be walking the line crossing it here and there fairly easy without doing any harm
Anyway, not defending anyone just stating facts
And states nd Feds have unlimited financial means to run you into a ground if they choose so

I mean I read that you're saying you're not defending anyone, but this case is so far from being a 'well the regs are kinda confusing' type of case.

The regs are and were very clear in Utah that the hunter has to be present when the dogs are set loose on the track. Not wait until the cat is treed, call the paying client to drive a could hours and meet you under the tree to kill the cat. The pending bear case is going to be similarly rough for Mr. Lemon.

This case sounds like a bit of a setup to me. The other case is more problematic. He baited and used dogs .

sounds like he let some guys just be shooters not hunters. Shame but seems like the money just was to good to pass up from some lazy hunters

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
This case sounds like a bit of a setup to me. The other case is more problematic. He baited and used dogs .

There's a reason he pled guilty here. And the judge rejected the first plea deal for being too lenient. He's been accused of doing this kind of thing on cats multiple times (was fined in the 90s for wounding cats to then follow up with clients) but there wasn't enough evidence in those instances. Plus, he had a few high ranking DWR officials that were good friends that very much facilitated a "look the other way" culture to WLH violations. That changed and within a year charges start happening. This time around there were texts between the guide who caught the cat and Wade, then Wade and the client. It was cut and dry.

And right now he is spending a couple months
38 miles up our local River at Florence
thinking about how to beat the game next time,
or how to get even with whoever.
Maybe he will mend his ways after this expensive vacation.

Cheating never ever gains anything regardless.
Playing games as it sounds like he has been is
a gamble on how long he could get by with it.

Glad you didn't get caught up in such crap Larry.
George

quote:

Originally posted by justanotherhunter:

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
This case sounds like a bit of a setup to me. The other case is more problematic. He baited and used dogs .

There's a reason he pled guilty here. And the judge rejected the first plea deal for being too lenient. He's been accused of doing this kind of thing on cats multiple times (was fined in the 90s for wounding cats to then follow up with clients) but there wasn't enough evidence in those instances. Plus, he had a few high ranking DWR officials that were good friends that very much facilitated a "look the other way" culture to WLH violations. That changed and within a year charges start happening. This time around there were texts between the guide who caught the cat and Wade, then Wade and the client. It was cut and dry.

I hear, from a source I consider reliable , that a plea bargain was reached . There was to be a guilty plea to a misdemeanor and a small fine . The judge changed for reasons I do not recall . The new judge rejected the terms of the plea deal .

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:

quote:

Originally posted by justanotherhunter:

quote:

Originally posted by larryshores:
This case sounds like a bit of a setup to me. The other case is more problematic. He baited and used dogs .

There's a reason he pled guilty here. And the judge rejected the first plea deal for being too lenient. He's been accused of doing this kind of thing on cats multiple times (was fined in the 90s for wounding cats to then follow up with clients) but there wasn't enough evidence in those instances. Plus, he had a few high ranking DWR officials that were good friends that very much facilitated a "look the other way" culture to WLH violations. That changed and within a year charges start happening. This time around there were texts between the guide who caught the cat and Wade, then Wade and the client. It was cut and dry.

I hear, from a source I consider reliable , that a plea bargain was reached . There was to be a guilty plea to a misdemeanor and a small fine . The judge changed for reasons I do not recall . The new judge rejected the terms of the plea deal .

Yes, the new judge rejected the terms of the first plea bargain (which did not include any jail time and a much shorter suspension from operating Wade Lemon Hunting on federal lands) for being too lenient given the incontrovertible evidence and magnitude of the crimes involved. This was a pretty blatant defrauding of the client. They released a few new dogs when the client arrived, claiming it was a fresh track, to make it seem legit to the guy that they waited to call until after the cat was already treed. Then kept the cat treed for hours while the client drove to meet them. The client arrived at the tree with way more dogs there than were "released". The texting history obtained by law enforcement confirmed the willful intent to defraud the client into thinking it was a lawful, fair chase hunt when it was neither.