Man fined for illegal sale of wild goose meat

MELFORT A Saskatchewan man has been fined $11,500 for wildlife trafficking after he admitted to illegally selling wild goose meat in a food store he manages on a Hutterite colony.

David Tschetter, a 56-year-old Star City resident, recently pleaded guilty in Melfort provincial court to five charges under the federal Migratory Birds Convention Act.

Tschetter was charged after an undercover probe that began in 2014 in which conservation officers learned that high volumes of migratory bird meat — mainly geese — had been coming into the Star City Hutterite Colony shop to feed its residents.

The meat was being processed into jerky and sausage and authorities believed more of it was coming in than could be used by the residents.

Court heard that despite warnings to Tschetter that it’s illegal to sell wild goose meat, undercover officers visited the business and were able to purchase the meat five times between 2014 and September 2017.

Tschetter has also been ordered to process 159 kilograms of seized goose meat into sausage for food banks in the Melfort area.

The Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment said in a release that trafficking in wildlife is illegal under federal and provincial legislation, yet it’s prevalent on social media sites and through illegal dealers.