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Here’s what’s worth reading today, Monday, August 19, 2019:
Popular Louisiana fishing charter pilot Theophile Bourgeois killed in plane crash; 2 rescued: One person died and two others had to be rescued after a seaplane from Bourgeois Fishing Charters crashed Sunday afternoon in Chandeleur Sound, according to the Coast Guard. The dead man was identified as Theophile Bourgeois, the company’s owner. An agency spokesman said a call came in from the company at 2:56 p.m., saying contact with the plane had been lost. A helicopter crew that arrived at the scene in the waters off St. Bernard Parish recovered two of the plane’s occupants — one conscious and the other unconscious. Both were transported to University Medical Center in New Orleans, where the unconscious person was declared dead.
Big-game hunting embezzler from Minnesota imprisoned in North Carolina: Jerry Hennessey, who used money from the elevator he managed in Minnesota to pay for big-game hunting trips, on July 29 reported to the low-security area of Butner Federal Correctional Institution in North Carolina. Hennessey, the former general manager of the Ashby Farmers Elevator Cooperative, was sentenced June 21 in Fergus Falls, Minn. He will serve eight years in prison for federal wire fraud and income tax charges. He pleaded guilty to stealing more than $5 million from the co-op over at least 15 years and writing co-op checks for big-game hunting trips across the globe. He had spent more than $500,000 on taxidermy alone and built facilities at his rural home to display it. Many of the payments were labeled for corn and soybeans to mask the fraud.
Lake Lanier fishing guide, wife indicted on 29 felonies in alleged fraud scheme: A well-known fishing guide on Lake Lanier and his wife were indicted Monday on a combined 29 felony charges for allegedly running a large fraud scheme, court records show. Bradley Shane Watson and Pamela Jo Watson each face nine counts of theft by taking and one count of deposit account fraud, Forsyth County Superior Court records show. Bradley Watson also faces an additional count of theft by taking, seven counts of theft by deception and one count of theft by receiving.The couple is accused of reportedly defrauding investors out of more than $235,000. When Bradley Watson was arrested in July 2018, the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office said he took money from two people for a boat deposit and investments to purchase boats for resale, AJC.com previously reported. However, after he gave the two a check for $45,000, the check bounced, the sheriff’s office said. Pamela Watson was arrested later in the month, and she’s accused of writing bad checks on her husband’s behalf.
New ‘expedited checkout’ for Texas hunting, fishing licenses: New hunting and fishing licenses are now on sale for the 2019-20 seasons. Old licenses, with the exception of a year-to-date fishing license, expire Aug. 31. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is instituting a new “expedited checkout” to speed the process of re-purchasing the same license, like the popular Super Combo license for hunting and all-water fishing ($68) or the Senior Super Combo ($32 for Texans 65 or older). This year, TPWD has also made it easier to show proof-of-license. From now on, hunters and anglers can use an electronic image of their license as proof-of-license and show/display it in an electronic photo of your license, an emailed receipt or via your account within the license point-of-sale system, the Outdoor Annual App or the My Texas Hunt Harvest App (for hunters).
Longtime hunter, now caregiver, looks for hunting land in the Charlotte area: Joe Thompson is a Navy veteran and has spent a majority his 54 years out in the fields hunting because for him, deer hunting isn’t just a season, it’s a year-round process. But this past year, deer season hasn’t been on Thompson’s mind. Thompson’s wife, Shirley, suffers from multiple sclerosis and needs full-time care after a major fall last year. But after a recent visit to Shirley’s doctor, Thompson found some more time on his hands. It’s with this time, Thompson hopes to get back in the hunting game. “If I could find someplace to hunt in the Charlotte area where it’s not a long way for me to drive and get out into the stand so I could still hunt and take care of my wife,” said Thompson. “That would be ideal.”
I went fishing for a whopper in the trout-rich rivers of Patagonia. Here’s what happened. Every angler dreams of a place that takes ahold of the imagination and won’t let go. For me that’s always been Patagonia. Its beauty and vastness are part of its allure, but so is its distance. It’s a committed angler who travels to another hemisphere to search for trout. I wanted to prove how committed I was. That meant 28 hours, two flights and a long drive to the Collón Curá Lodge, on the famed river in the Patagonian desert. A dream destination is about more than the fishing: It’s about hospitality, guides, food and all the traditions that make a place unique. Argentina specializes in an easygoing warmth, and when I arrived at the lodge, the manager was standing outside with a glass of Malbec and a still-hot empanada. Talk about a winning welcome.
Justice Department says it’s gun shop’s job to verify hunting licenses: The California Justice Department does not verify the validity of hunting licenses for people under 21 who are applying to buy firearms, instead saying that’s the responsibility of individual gun shops. That information could shed light on how Poway synagogue shooting suspect John Earnest was able to buy his gun at 19 with an invalid hunting license. Earnest picked up the AR-15 style weapon from San Diego Guns on April 26, the day before the alleged attack. His hunting license was not going to become valid until July 1, 2019, according to state Fish and Wildlife.
New challenge to hunters: Take along someone new to hunting: Nebraska officials are challenging hunters to pledge that they’ll introduce someone new to hunting in the coming seasons. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and several partners on Thursday announced the Take ‘Em Hunting Challenge. People who take prospective hunters along can upload photos of their hunting trips to the commission’s website and be registered to win prizes. The prizes to be awarded after drawings include a crossover utility vehicle valued at more than $15,000, gift cards and outdoor gear. Prizes will be given away throughout the challenge, which runs Sept. 1 through May next year.
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