NY Man Who Killed Dogs Forged Consent To Hunt Ridgefield Property: PD

RIDGEFIELD, CT — The New York man who killed two pet German Shepherds last November forged permission from the Ridgefield property owner to hunt on her land, according to court documents unsealed last week.

The warrant for Michael Konschak's arrest indicates he mistook the dogs, 10-year-old German Shepherds Cimo and Lieben, for coyotes, or coyote-dog hybrids. The affidavit shows he was later advised by two taxidermists that the dogs were, indeed, dogs.

State law requires hunters to have written permission from the private landowner for the current season, and copies of the of the form must be carried while hunting.

The Private Land Consent Form for the 2022-23 season produced by Konschak to police was pre-dated for "September 2023," and the Topcrest Lane landowner's signature was forged, according to the affidavit.

One of the three tree-stands Konschak used was located within Ridgebury Slope, Town of Ridgefield open space where hunting is forbidden due to its proximity to Ridgebury Elementary School, according to the warrant.

The landowner told police that the Carmel, NY, resident had been hunting on her property for approximately 30 years, but confirmed the signature on the consent form produced by Konschak was a forgery.

The dogs Cimo and Lieben were part of the neighboring Caviola household, and fled into the woods after a bear broke down a fence around 7:30 on the morning of Nov. 18. From a hunting blind, Konschak said he saw one dog chasing two deer. When the animal crossed his line of sight, he "put it down" with a TenPoint Venom crossbow with an attached scope, according to the affidavit. The dog was about 20 yards away, and died "within five to 10 seconds."

As Konschak began walking toward the dead dog, the second German Shepherd turned toward the hunter "in an aggressive manner," with its "head down and bearing teeth." The hunter said he attempted to wave and shout the dog off, to no avail. Konschak told police he was faced with "a split-second decision" and he "had to put it down."

The warrant indicates the hunter later visited a taxidermist, who suggested that the animals were not coyotes, but likely dogs. Konschak then proceeded to skin the pelts himself. He visited another taxidermist to have the pelts tanned, but was again told the skins were likely those of domestic pets.

The first taxidermist told police that "If you need to make a quick decision, a person could make a mistake, but up close you could tell they were German Shepherds."

When he was questioned by police, Koschak said he disposed of the dead animals on Nov. 18, and failed to tell them a taxidermist had advised him they were domestic pets. The hunter also misdirected investigators from the Department of Energy and Enviromental Protection when asked where he had deposited the dogs' bodies, according to the warrant.

Konschak, 62, has been charged with two counts of archery hunting deer (private land)/failing to have written consent from the landowner, two counts of tampering with evidence, forgery, interfering with an officer, and two counts of violating wild game hunting regulations (behavior and actions of hunters — domestic animals), according to court records. His request for an accelerated rehabilitation that would have seen the charges against him dropped was denied on Wednesday. He is due back in Danbury Superior Court on April 12.