PORT ANGELES — A man facing 26 poaching charges in Clallam and Jefferson counties was booked into the Clallam County jail Sunday afternoon after missing court Thursday.
A warrant was issued for Jason Bradley Hutt’s arrest after he missed his arraignment on eight of those charges in Clallam County Superior Court.
Hutt, 29, was booked into the Clallam County jail on $50,000 bail at 1:45 p.m. Sunday on four felony bench warrants.
Clallam County Undersheriff Ron Cameron said deputies found Hutt at a Sequim-area home Sunday and arrested him without incident.
He had previously pleaded not guilty to 16 illegal hunting violations in Clallam County and two others in Jefferson County.
Clallam County Superior Court Judge Brian Coughenour on Thursday issued a $15,000 bench warrant for Hutt’s arrest.
Hutt posted a $10,000 bail bond Sept. 6.
Fish and Wildlife officers alleged that Hutt and an accomplice — Wyatt James Beck — illegally killed several bears, deer and elk in Clallam and Jefferson counties in the summer of 2018.
The eight new charges against Hutt stem from discovery of an illegally hunted or illegally possessed river otter pelt, bobcat pelt and harlequin duck carcass that were found at Hutt’s residence Aug. 30.
It is illegal to possess a bobcat pelt or otter pelt without a Fish and Wildlife-approved identification seal, Fish and Wildlife Officer Bryan Davidson said in court papers.
Hutt was convicted of hunting and killing black-tail deer without tags or licenses in 2016.
Davidson said in court papers that Hutt collected elk and deer heads as trophies.
Sgt. Kit Rosenberger of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife has said the case was the largest poaching investigation that his department had seen in recent years.
Hutt was originally charged Aug. 26 in Clallam County Superior Court with 12 counts of first-degree unlawful hunting of big game, two counts of first-degree unlawful transportation of wildlife and single counts of waste of wildlife and unlawful hunting on the property of another.
He and Beck were each charged in Jefferson County Superior Court on Sept. 6 with two counts of first-degree accomplice to unlawful hunting of big game for the alleged poaching of two elk in the Brinnon area last year.
Hutt was charged Sept. 27 in Clallam County Superior Court with two counts of first-degree unlawful hunting of big game, three counts of second-degree hunting of wild animals or wild birds, two counts of unlawful possession of a loaded firearm and one count of unlawful carrying of a firearm.
Beck, also of Sequim, has pleaded not guilty to seven counts of first-degree unlawful hunting of big game, two counts of first-degree unlawful transportation of wildlife and single counts of waste of wildlife and unlawful hunting on the property of another.
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Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsuladailynews.com.
Reporter Rob Ollikainen contributed to this report.
