Buckeye Reporter

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, representing the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, has announced the indictment of a Wilmington man for poaching an 18-point antlered white-tailed deer. The accused, Christopher J. Alexander, allegedly unlawfully harvested the deer on Nov. 9, 2023.

“Blinded by greed, the defendants set their sights on fame and fortune while disregarding basic hunting regulations,” Yost said. “Instead of the cover of Field & Stream, their notoriety will be a booking photo.”

The indictment accuses Alexander of claiming that he had hunted the deer on his sister's property and presenting falsified written permission to hunt there to a wildlife officer. However, an investigation by ODNR’s Division of Wildlife found evidence suggesting that Alexander had illegally hunted the trophy buck on private property about 10 miles from his sister’s land.

The investigation also revealed that Corey P. Haunert and Zachary R. Haunert helped Alexander stage the deer taking at his sister’s property to conceal the poaching. It was also discovered that Corey Haunert aided Alexander in poaching deer on multiple occasions.

“This once-in-a-lifetime deer embodies the great natural resources Ohio has to offer,” Yost added. “It is shameful that this deer ended up in an evidence room rather than adorning an ethical hunter’s wall as a prized trophy.”

Christopher Alexander faces 23 total charges including theft by deception and tampering with evidence among others. Corey Haunert faces eight charges including aiding a wildlife offender and tampering with evidence while Kristina Alexander faces two charges - falsification and aiding a wildlife offender. Zachary Haunert faces two misdemeanor counts of aiding a wildlife offender.

The white-tailed deer is recognized as one of Ohio’s most prominent wildlife species and was declared as Ohio’s state mammal in 1988 by the General Assembly.

The cases are being prosecuted by attorneys from Yost’s Environmental Enforcement section. Indictments merely contain allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proved guilty in a court of law.