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Date: 11/13/2005
Article Title: Phone call helps crack case of illegal mountain lion cubs 
Media Source: San Francisco Chronicle (California)
By Tom Stienstra

One of the strangest wildlife cases of the year was broken open by a team of state game wardens who rescued two baby mountain lions that weighed 5 to 7 pounds -- and in the process busted a suspect for drug, weapons and illegal wildlife charges.

A third lion cub was found dead in front of the house of one of the suspects.

"Until this case was nailed, I wasn't able to sleep at night," said Lynette Shimek, recently honored as the state's Wildlife Officer of the Year, who directed a team of seven game wardens on the case over the past two months.

The case started in early October when an anonymous caller to the Willits Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Mendocino County reported "a sick mountain lion kitten." That alerted Shimek.

In the next two weeks, Shimek's team and the Mendocino County Sheriffs Department pieced together the details. They learned that three mountain lion cubs had been in possession of one of the suspects, who in turn, gave two of them away.

The DFG collected the baby cougar from the Willits rehab center and was able to track another cub to Fort Bragg at the Mendocino Coast Animal Hospital. Both of those cubs were rescued and are being rehabilitated at the DFG's Wildlife Investigation Lab in Rancho Cordova, according to Troy Swauger of the DFG.

"They can't be released to the wild," Swauger said. "They've been raised inside cages so they don't have the ability to survive in the wild. They will have to go to zoos or otherwise stay in captivity."

A twist in the case came when Shimek received a surprise phone call from one of the suspects. "Hey, I saw a mountain lion hit on the highway in front of my house," he allegedly told Shimek.

Shimek and other game wardens found the lion, another small cub, and are still investigating the cause of death.

Meanwhile, Shimek and six other game wardens converged on a Fort Bragg residence, looking for more evidence. What they found was 261 pounds of marijuana, including 119 pounds ready to sell in bags, and a "little black book" with contacts and a ledger for sales of $12,000, $9,000 and several others, and 35 weapons. "Some of the dope was found under the bed of a 1-year-old," Swauger said.

The game wardens also confiscated illegal owl legs, feet and talons, Shimek said, along with four steel-jawed traps with fresh hair in them, a 2001 bear tag (a violation since all bear tags must be returned), illegal martial arts fighting sticks and an illegal sap.

The suspects have been arrested, Swauger said, and the case has been handed over to the Mendocino County district attorney.

Russell Rexrode of Fort Bragg was charged this week with four misdemeanor wildlife violations and penal code violations for illegal deadly weapons. Tony Pardini of Philo also was cited on several misdemeanor wildlife charges, and other charges are pending.
 
 
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