January 13, 2012
By Kyle Hopkins and Richard Mauer, BellinghamHerald.com
A top official in the Alaska Department of Fish and Game quit his job
Thursday after being charged with 12 criminal hunting violations, state
officials said.
The charges against Division of Wildlife Conservation Director Corey
Rossi, a controversial 2010 appointment, are related to an illegal 2008
bear hunt, according to Alaska State Troopers and charges filed Thursday
in state court.
Troopers say the division director lied on big game hunting reports.
He was a licensed assistant big game guide at the time, according to
troopers.
Rossi, 51, submitted his resignation on Thursday, according an email
from Fish and Game Commissioner Cora Campbell.
In a report posted Thursday afternoon, troopers say Rossi aided two
non- residents in the killing of three black bears in Game Management
Unit 16B, in the Susitna Valley. Rossi also killed a bear himself during
the same hunt, troopers say.
But Rossi lied on reports to the state, saying that he killed all
four bears and that the out-of-state hunters were unsuccessful,
according to troopers.
The troopers Wildlife Investigations Unit in Anchorage learned of the
illegal bear hunt on Nov. 22, 2010, from an out-of-state law enforcement
agency, the charges say. The agency, which is not named in the charges,
was investigating possible illegal hunting in Alaska.
Robert "Bruce" Hubbard of Utah admitted to killing two black bears in
Alaska while hunting with Corey Rossi and Duane Stroupe of Oregon, the
charges say.
Under Alaska law, hunters must "seal" the skins and skulls of the
black bears they kill. Rossi sealed four black bears at a taxidermy
business in Anchorage on June 12, 2008, according to Fish and Game
records, the charges say. Rossi reported that he killed all four, using
bait, on June 10, 2008.
Troopers and other agencies conducted multiple interviews last month
in Alaska, Oregon and Utah. Rossi admitted to sealing the bears under
his name, even though he did not kill all four of the animals, the
charges say.
Rossi is accused of:
• A permit hunt report violation.
• Three counts of making false statements on a black bear sealing
certificate.
• Two counts of unsworn falsification.
• Unlawful possession of an illegally taken bear.
He also is charged with five counts of unlawful acts by an assistant
big game guide.
All are misdemeanors.
Campbell has named Dale Rabe, Conservation Division Operations
Manager, as his interim replacement, according to a Fish and Game
spokeswoman.
