A Penhold area man received a stiff fine in Red Deer traffic court on Monday for poaching a moose this summer on private land.
Harry Allan Wood was fined $5,500 when he pleaded guilty to hunting wildlife when the season was closed under the Wildlife Act.
Crown prosecutor Paul Morigeau told court that Wood, who is a treaty Indian, shot the animal on private land when he didn’t have permission.
Morigeau said the maximum fine is $8,000.
Morigeau said Wood was accompanied by Lance Edward Eliuk of Penhold, who had permission to hunt on the land but only during hunting season.
The accused was charged by Alberta Sustainable Resource Development wildlife officers after the animal’s body was loaded onto a truck.
The meat was confiscated by the officers.
In Alberta, treaty Indians are guaranteed a right to hunt, fish and trap at any time of the year for subsistence.
The guilty plea came at the start of a scheduled trial.
Wildlife Act charges against Eliuk and Wood’s son Jordan McMillan-Wood were withdrawn.