Coventry Man Accused Of Shooting Deer On Someone's Property

COVENTRY, RI — A Coventry man was arrested Monday after Rhode Island Environmental Police said he shot and killed a deer on their property.

A Coventry homeowner called police and told them they heard two gun shots and found a dead whitetail deer on their property. When police responded, they determined the deer was shot with a small caliber rifle.

Police said an officer followed the blood trail left from the deer to a neighboring home.

The property owner was interviewed and admitted to shooting at two deer. He was charged with discharge of a firearm within 500 feet of an occupied dwelling while hunting, deer hunting without deer tags and hunting with an unauthorized weapon.

Police seized the rifle and two shell casings from the man's backyard. The whitetail buck that was recovered was donated to the Phoenix Sportsman's Club.

"DLE takes poaching very seriously — poachers steal opportunities from hunters that follow regulations and selfishly deplete our precious natural resources," a spokesperson for the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management said in a statement.

The department encouraged residents to call 401-222-3070 if they suspect someone is poaching.