🛶 “Turtle Trouble on the Reservoir!” Trio Caught Red-Handed with Illegal Snapping Turtle Haul in Westchester NY

Oh Snap! – Westchester County

On May 3, ECO Murphy received a call from the Somers Police Department regarding three people in a boat on the Muscoot Reservoir in Westchester County shining a spotlight in the woods. ECO Murphy went to the location and observed three individuals in a rowboat stop at a nearby peninsula and remove a large object from the boat before proceeding to a nearby cove to dock. Officers approached the trio at the dock and the subjects claimed they were bowfishing for carp. ECO Murphy checked their equipment and licenses before returning to the peninsula to investigate. The Officer found a large cooler, partially hidden under a rowboat, containing three live snapping turtles. Once confronted with the evidence, one subject admitted to using a spotlight to draw the turtles to the surface of the water before capturing them in a large net. Snapping turtles have an open hunting season from July 15 through Sept. 30 and can only be taken with a bow or firearm. The individual who admitted to the unlawful catches did not possess a valid hunting license and received three tickets for hunting without a license, the illegal take of wildlife, and taking game out of season, returnable to Somers Court.

Sources: https://dec.ny.gov/news/press-releases/2025/6/environmental-conservation-police-on-patrol