Deer head found near Oregon neighborhood sets off a search for poacher, officials say

A deer’s head was cut from its body and found near an Oregon neighborhood, wildlife officials said.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is searching for the person who left a deer to waste near Springfield homes on Dec. 9.

“According to authorities, the man shot the deer from a private driveway near Upper Camp Creek Road in Springfield,” Fish and Wildlife said in a Feb. 2 news release. “Troopers aren’t sure if the man realized how close he was to nearby residences.”

The man killed the animal near someone’s house. A passerby asked the man what he was doing, and he took off in a Chevy pickup, officials said.

The person didn’t suspect the man was doing anything illegal but thought it was strange that the man drove off.

“Shortly after, someone discovered the deer’s carcass and head,” officials said. “Neighbors notified an (Oregon State Police) Fish and Wildlife trooper of the incident.”

Wildlife officials headed to the scene with a K-9 trained to find carcasses.

“Our K-9 Buck is extremely useful in cases like this,” Senior Trooper Josh Wolcott said in a news release. “He can locate evidence by scent, which otherwise would require several troopers with metal detectors running a grid pattern to find. And it doesn’t matter if it’s dark out, as it was in this incident.”

The buck’s head was lying next to its body, a photo shows. The poacher had cut the deer’s head off as a trophy, wildlife officials said.

Neighbors helped troopers with the deer, and its meat was donated to a local church.

Officials ask that anyone with information contact the Oregon State Police at 1-800-452-7888.

Springfield is about 110 miles south of Portland.

This story was originally published February 3, 2022 at 12:23 PM with the headline "Deer head found near Oregon neighborhood sets off a search for poacher, officials say."