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11/10/2007

Ross P. Carroll, 19, of Searsport was sentenced in Skowhegan District Court to 30 days in jail and Howard Button, 22, of Quinlan, Texas, to 15 days.

Maine game wardens arrested the two men after Border Patrol agents on Thursday found a broken-down pickup loaded with moose meat.

Both men are stationed at Camp Lejeune, N.C., and are believed to be on unauthorized leave from the Marine Corps, according to the Maine Warden Service.

Each was charged with two counts of night hunting and three counts of illegal possession of moose.

"This is an excellent example of agencies working together to protect Maine's natural resources," said Warden Major Gregg Sanborn. "Border Patrol, State Police, Somerset District Attorney's Office and the Maine Warden Service combined to process a confusing crime scene that covered several miles and reached across the state."

According to a press statement from the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, Border Patrol agents reported before dawn Thursday that they had found a truck broken down on Route 15 in Jackman, which had a dead moose in its bed.

Game Warden James Babiarz found parts of two butchered moose -- four front quarters and four back quarters -- in the pickup, which was registered to Carroll and bore a North Carolina registration.

Babiarz also noticed another dead moose, this one within sight of Route 15, according to the release.

A team of wardens spent hours collecting evidence and investigating leads, the release said. After interviewing members of Carroll's family in Searsport, the search broadened for another man who was believed to be with Carroll.

At about 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Game Warden Rick Clowry identified two men who matched the suspects' descriptions walking along U.S. Route 201 south of Jackman.

The pair were taken to Greenville for questioning, according to the Warden Service.

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