Cambridge bound A Saanich teen earns rarefied scholarship. Page A3
NEWS: CRD commits money to ailing rail line /A5 ARTS: Urbanite transforms art gallery /A19 SPORTS: Royals host Pink in the Rink /A22
Gray Rothnie
SAANICHNEWS Friday, January 25, 2013
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Life in the fast lane Canadian Olympians and the nation’s best young swimmers face off at the Canada West championships at Commonwealth Place. See the story on page A22.
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University of Victoria athlete Craig Dagnall swims the butterfly during a practice at the Commonwealth Pool in preparation for the Canada West championships.
Urban poaching maims deer in Saanich Animal found wandering with crossbow bolt in head Kyle Slavin News staff
The discovery of two deer suffering from arrow-related injuries has police concerned a poacher is firing a high-powered crossbow in urban Saanich. A resident found the first animal dead in their yard in the 2400-block of Alpine Cres. near Ten Mile Point last Friday (Jan.
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18). When Saanich pound officers attended, they found the deer had entry and exit arrow wounds in its lower abdomen. “That wouldn’t have been an immediate kill. It probably ran off and suffered a slow and painful death,” said Peter Pauwels, a conservation officer with the provincial Conservation Officer Service. Conservation officers located the second deer in Ten Mile Point on Tuesday morning, alive and walking around with a crossbow bolt sticking out of its head. Saanich police Sgt. Steve Eassie says area residents reported to police multiple times in the last few weeks that a deer was walking around with an arrow in its head.
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Police and the conservation officers were unable to locate that animal until Tuesday morning. The deer was ultimately contained and killed by conservation officers. “Any time there’s an incident of urban poaching, it’s obviously very much a concern,” Eassie said. “It does pose a real large threat to the public.” Saanich police have dealt with a rash of deer poaching incidents in recent years. There were nine known instances in the fall of 2010, four in the fall of 2011 and at least two last year. In these incidents, people found animals with arrow wounds or with heads and limbs cut off, as well as reports of seeing living
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deer walking around with arrows sticking out of their bodies. Of concern to police is the heightened risk to public safety. With the deer found dead on Jan. 18, the arrow was shot with enough force to fly straight through the large animal. “It is entirely possible that there is an arrow or a bolt out there. It could be in someone’s yard. It is very concerning for us because that (arrow) could’ve injured someone in the neighbourhood where this was fired,” Eassie said. PLEASE SEE: Police appeal to public, Page A2
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