The Ontario Courts have fined two hunters and a tourist business in northwestern Ontario following an illegal moose hunt.
Before the moose hunting season opened in 2022, Joshua Mychalyshyn from Kenora and Daniel Riege from Winnipeg, and a third person, participated in an illegal hunt near Maynard Lake between October 13 and 14.
Riege was issued an outfitter moose tag from Maynard Lake Lodge 2015 Inc., and was a guest there.
Mychalyshyn and Riege shot a calf and a cow moose during the closed season, which were brought to the lodge and processed.Â
Riege then exported moose meat to Manitoba.
During the course of the investigation, it was determined that Mychalyshyn falsely reported on his moose hunter report and had also been angling without a licence in the year 2023.
As a result, Mychalyshyn has pleaded guilty to hunting moose without a licence, possessing wildlife unlawfully, making a false statement in a document and fishing without a licence.
He has been fined $4,000 and is prohibited from hunting in the province for a year.
Riege has pleaded guilty to hunting moose without a licence, possessing wildlife unlawfully and exporting wildlife without a permit.
He was fined $3,500 and is prohibited from hunting in Ontario for one year.
Justice of the Peace Geordie B. McEwen heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Kenora, on June 18, 2025.
CJ Goater is a graduate of Fanshawe College’s broadcast journalism program. He is based in Thunder Bay and covers stories across northwestern Ontario, with a passion for politics, sports and crime. Contact CJ at goaterc@radioabl.ca.