(JENNIFER STAHN / iNFOnews.ca)

Three men caught poaching in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in the North Thompson were each slapped with thousands in fines and a 10-year hunting ban.

Several charges are outstanding for one of the men, who is wanted on a warrant, while the other three appeared electronically in a Kamloops courtroom, April 18.

Boe Boe Gyi, Kyaw Aue Thah and Ywa Baw Mu pleaded guilty last month to hunting mule deer, marmot and grouse out of season. Thah, who organized the May 2020 hunting trip, was given an $8,000 penalty, while Gyi and Mu were fined $5,000 each.

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Tin Hla, the fourth accused, didn't appear in court.

Thah gathered all four men from Surrey as they headed to the Little Fort area in his Dodge Ram. They prowled forest roads overnight and shot two mule deer, with a rifle Thah brought, lit up by spotlights. One of them was later found to be pregnant with two fetuses.

They were caught by a conservation officer the next day before leaving the area. They lied repeatedly about what they were doing, but the officer eventually uncovered their poaching activities, questioning the men multiple times.

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Judge Roy Dickey abided by the Crown's suggestion, imposing the fines and the 10-year hunting bans. The rifle and the spotlights used were also forfeited to the province.

Dickey said there were "potential" charter breaches in the investigation, but those concerns were waived on the Crown's suggestion, while accepting guilty pleas from the three men.

Dickey allowed the men seven years to pay their fines.

Hla, who was the only man with a valid firearm licence, was not mentioned at the April 18 hearing. He's still wanted on a warrant.

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