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Lodi resident Vincente Munoz, 19; and Stockton residents Daniel Charco Molina, 30; Jose Luis Suarez, 25; Eloy Perez Echeverria, 33; Lorenzo Diaz Juarez, 26; and Hector Ocampo, 29 all were charged with misdemeanor poaching violations, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff.
Hinchcliff, who is the county's fish and game poaching prosecutor, charged the men with spotlighting violations and use of an illegal weapon for deer hunting.
He said they were convicted last Thursday, Sept. 8, following their acceptance of a plea deal.
Hinchcliff said the convictions resulted from an investigation by Lake County Game Warden John Holley and Mendocino County Game Warden Matt Manes.
Wardens had recently received reports from concerned citizens who lived on Hendricks Road in Scotts Valley that people were killing deer at night with the use of spotlights, and that several deer had recently been killed illegally at night in the area, Hinchcliff said.
The area residents also had given the wardens descriptions of vehicles being used by the poachers, including a white- or tan-colored van, according to Hinchcliff.
He said witnesses reported groups of people engaged in organized poaching activity, with a person driving the vehicle, a person shining a spotlight, a person shooting and several people quickly running from the vehicle, grabbing the poached animal, dragging it back to the vehicle, and speeding off.
Residents also were concerned with their safety because the poaching and shooting was reportedly close to houses, Hinchcliff said.
At least one of the residents found butchered carcasses of deer around pear orchards in the area with garbage used in butchering the deer left behind on the ground. Hinchcliff said the deer reportedly being killed included bucks, does and fawns.
Wardens had also received reports that last year poachers in the area were herding deer into fences and when fawns got stuck in fences the poachers were clubbing the deer to death, he said.
As a result of the reports, Holley and Manes set up surveillance in the Hendricks road area on Monday, Sept. 5, Hinchcliff said.
At approximately 9:30 p.m. Sept. 5, well after dark, the wardens observed a tan and white passenger van driving slowly on Hendricks Road with a spotlight being shined out of the passenger side of the van and onto private property on the south side of Hendricks road, according to Hinchcliff.
The wardens then detained the vehicle and the seven occupants of the vehicle. In addition to the driver and the front seat passenger, Hinchcliff said there were five individuals in the rear seats.
On the front seat of the vehicle wardens found a small amount of methamphetamine, a meth pipe, a box of .22 caliber ammunition and a spotlight that was still warm. Hinchcliff said that underneath the rear seat wardens found a loaded Marlin .22 caliber rifle.
All seven of the vehicle's occupants were arrested. Hinchcliff said it was discovered that all seven individuals did not speak English and were staying at an immigrant labor camp located in Scotts Valley with a large number of other agricultural workers.
Hinchcliff charged Munoz, Molina, Suarez, Juarez, Ocampo and Echeverria, and also charged the seventh man, 23-year-old Eugenio Munoz Gomez of Lodi was additional counts for being a felon in possession of a firearm, providing false identification to a peace officer, and four misdemeanor poaching violations including spotlighting and hunting deer with an illegal weapon.
Gomez is scheduled to appear in court with his attorney on Tuesday, Sept. 13, Hinchcliff said.
At their arraignment on Sept. 8, Munoz, Molina, Suarez, Juarez, Ocampo and Echeverria were represented by defense counsel and assisted by a Spanish interpreter, Hinchcliff said.
In an effort to get an early disposition and prevent significant costs to the court later for the cost of interpreters, Hinchcliff offered a plea that was agreed to by all six defendants, their attorney and Judge Andrew Blum.
Hinchcliff said all six of the misdemeanor defendants pleaded no contest to a violation of Fish and Game Code section 2005(b), use of an artificial light to assist in the taking or attempted taking of a game animal.
He said Judge Blum then sentenced them, placing each on three years of probation and revoking their hunting privileges for three years. Judge Blum also ordered the firearm, spotlight and ammunition to be forfeited and ordered each of the men to serve 45 days in jail.
Hinchcliff said all six individuals have Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) holds and could face deportation proceedings at the end of their jail term if federal officials pursue the cases.
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