On July 4, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources police visitied a Cabell County man after learning he’d been keeping two deer — including the six-point buck in the doorway — in captivity at his home for at least a year.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A Cabell County man was visited by authorities over the weekend after Division of Natural Resources police learned he was keeping two deer as pets inside his mobile home.
Division of Natural Resources Officer Joshua Adessa said the man, whom he declined to identify because of an ongoing investigation, was cited for two counts of illegal possession of wildlife after police found the deer in his home on July 4. The two deer — a six-point buck and a spike — had a healthy supply of hay available to them inside the mobile home and had apparently been living with the man for some time, Adessa said.
“One thing that was obvious right away — especially with the six-point buck — both deer had been confined for a period of at least a year,” Adessa said. “The subject told us eventually (that) the six-point buck, he had for at least two years living inside of his home.”
Adessa said he was on his way to meet up with another officer to conduct boat patrols on the Ohio River on July 4 when he received a tip from a concerned citizen that a buck was being kept inside a nearby home. The officers investigated the complaint and found two deer illegally confined in the man’s home. They were domesticated and not afraid of the officers.
“There was a large amount of hay strewn about the floor…