Authorities seek Fort Carson soldier in poaching case
A Fort Carson soldier accused of trespassing on private land and poaching several antelopes said he did it because he liked having a gun in his hands and “doing what he was trained to do,” according to his arrest warrant.
Wildlife officials say Spc. Tyrel Lee Weber, 21, admitted to killing 10 to 11 pronghorns and leaving many of their carcasses to rot. He also admitted to breaking through at least three gates to access land to hunt — in one case he allegedly shot off the combination lock, the warrant said.
Weber was arrested on suspicion of several hunting-related offenses in early January and was due in court on Jan. 30 but didn’t show up. An arrest warrant has been issued for his arrest.
Weber is listed as “not currently present for duty,” but is not yet considered absent without leave (AWOL), Fort Carson officials said. Weber, with the 12 Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, arrived at Fort Carson on Jan. 13, 2011. The 4th Brigade Combat Team is scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan later this month.
Fort Carson officials declined to say whether or not Weber had been deployed. According to his Facebook profile, Weber joined the Army in 2008 and had previously been stationed at Fort Benning, Ga. On his profile, Weber had an album of photos titled “Iraq.”
Authorities had been investigating Weber since April 2011 when wildlife officials found a pronghorn buck poached off of Sweet Road in eastern El Paso County.
On June 18, wildlife officials checking out reports of someone spot-lighting at night in the area where the carcass was found pulled Weber over in a traffic stop and found fresh pronghorn blood and hair in his truck along with three guns, according to his warrant.
A few days later, a wildlife officer went to Fort Carson to interview Weber. He admitted to killing 10 to 11 pronghorns over several weeks. The next day, he took the officer to the places where he had shot the animals, the warrant said.
Gazette reporter Ryan Maye Handy contributed to this report.
—
Contact Maria St. Louis-Sanchez: 636-0274
Twitter @mariastlouis
Facebook Gazette Maria St. Louis-Sanchez
