MN DNR Conservation Officer
District 1 – Baudette area
Last updated: 2025-10-27
CO Ben Huener (Roseau) checked duck, goose, grouse, and archery deer hunters throughout the week. Duck-hunting success has been slow, but some hunters are having luck in flooded fields. Violations for the week included hunting waterfowl with an unplugged shotgun and minor license violations. An injured rough-legged hawk was captured and transported to a rehabber.
CO Tony Hams (Warroad North) spent the week checking area small-game hunters, monitoring ATV traffic, and responding to various complaints. Small-game hunters continue to report success despite the rainy weather of late.
CO Coby Fontes (Warroad South) spent the week monitoring migratory waterfowl and small-game-hunting activity and following up on open cases. Hunters reported mixed success.
CO Nicholas Prachar (Baudette West) continued field training with COC Jayden Frank. The officers spent time following up on trespass complaints and other big-game activity. Time was also spent checking anglers and monitoring commercial fishing activity as emerald shiners are expected to begin running soon, though few have been seen so far. Anglers in the area have reported good fishing success.
CO Bobby Stringer (Thief River Falls West) reports an increase in deer movement throughout the district as the firearms season approaches. Private land “no trespassing” signs are going up and scouting was observed in the local wildlife management areas. Stringer wants to remind landowners to revisit trespassing statutes to ensure land is properly posted, and sight in firearms early to avoid complaints. Enforcement actions for the week included no waterfowl license in possession, failure to obtain a burn permit, burning prohibited material, allowing a youth hunter to hunt without a license, and abandonment of equipment in a WMA where prohibited.
CO Nick Bruesewitz (Karlstad) monitored ATV and waterfowl-hunting activity throughout the area. Time was spent patrolling forest roads for grouse-hunting activity and watching fields for shiners during the nights.
CO Brice Vollbrecht (Blackduck North) patrolled area ATV and forest roads for activity. Grouse hunters were contacted and mixed reports were received. He checked waterfowl hunters on area lakes and found limited success.
Baudette East – vacant.
Blackduck South – vacant.
District 2 – Bemidji area
Last updated: 2025-10-27
CO Tom Hutchins (Crookston) and COC Kaitlyn Istvanovich spent time this week checking waterfowl hunters, grouse hunters, and shoreline anglers. Hunters and anglers had varying levels of success.
CO Jamus Veit (Bemidji #1) spent the week checking small-game hunters, monitoring ATV activity, following up on ongoing cases, and answering questions from the public. Time was also spent working a shining detail with neighboring COs.
CO Andrew Goodman (Perham) primarily focused on waterfowl- and archery deer-hunting enforcement this week. Conditions remain dismal for ducks around the area but reports of birds staging both west and north are promising. Sustained high winds have slowed angling activity but have helped remove remaining foliage to improve small-game-hunting success. Complaints of dogs chasing deer and trespass were fielded.
CO Jake Swedberg (Detroit Lakes) spent the week at monthly K9 training, where the team focused on detection and area searches with the dogs. Swedberg and K9 Axel also assisted Cass County with locating a wanted individual in the woods. Time was also spent following up on deer cases and checking small-game hunters.
CO Jordan Anderson (Osage) patrolled public lands in the station and completed follow up on public waters violations. Time was also spent preparing for the upcoming firearms deer season and training.
CO William Landmark (Moorhead) spent the week following up with ongoing cases and responding to nuisance-beaver and other animal-related calls. A few more ducks started to show up in the area and pheasant hunter success has improved some. Time was also spent at the Buffalo River State Park youth hunt and a firearms safety class at the Glyndon Rod and Gun Club.
CO Angela Warren (Mahnomen) spent time on small-game, pheasant-, migratory waterfowl-, and deer-hunting activity. Wildlife management areas and waterfowl production areas were patrolled. Areas were worked for shining activity and ATV and off-road vehicle activity.
CO Brady Manteufel (Bagley) checked public lands and water accesses for activity. Phone calls from people with questions about licenses were answered. A few more varieties of waterfowl were observed harvested in the area and a report was received when checking anglers that bass fishing was also going well. Deer-possession permits were issued for road-killed deer and improper bear guide paperwork was addressed.
Pelican Rapids – vacant.
Bemidji #2 – vacant.
District 3 – Fergus Falls area
Last updated: 2025-10-27
CO Hanna Wood (Fergus Falls) spent the week focused on waterfowl- and small-game-hunting enforcement. Possession permits were issued for car-killed deer. She would like to advise people that the salt blocks commonly purchased from retail stores are often not legal to use during the deer season. Salt blocks containing any sweeteners (such as molasses, corn, acorns, apples, etc.) used during the deer season are considered bait.
CO Tricia Plautz (Henning) and COC Josephine Homeier spent the week working ATV and trapping activity and monitoring archery deer and waterfowl hunters. Time was spent investigating a commercial fish stocking violation and an early shooting complaint from a waterfowl hunter.
CO Ryan Brown (Elbow Lake) reports focusing his enforcement effort on pheasant- and deer-hunting activity throughout the week. A TIP complaint regarding taking deer within the closed season was received and fielded. Violations encountered this week included no license in personal possession, taking deer during the closed season, hunting with the aid of bait, and wanton waste.
CO Shane Osborne (Evansville) checked waterfowl, pheasant, and archery deer hunters. A waterfowl-hunting complaint was received and handled. ATV safety class organization with the local high school was conducted.
CO Jake Homan (Alexandria) spent the week patrolling Douglas County for angling, hunting, and ATV activities. Anglers are seeing more success as the weather has cooled. Enforcement action was taken for a variety of ATV and angling violations.
CO Felicia Znajda (Osakis) patrolled Todd and Douglas counties for anglers and waterfowl, pheasant, and archery deer hunters. Overall, she noticed anglers having more success than waterfowl hunters. Various violations were encountered, including taking trout out of season.
CO Curt Jepson (Wheaton) spent the week primarily focused on pheasant and waterfowl hunters. Questions about transporting deer in a managed CWD area and lawful access to bodies of water were fielded. He also assisted a neighboring station partner in investigating a deer taken out of season and multiple other violations. Enforcement action was taken.
CO Emily Douvier (Morris) reports working waterfowl, pheasant, and recreational vehicle activity. Enforcement action was taken for operating an unregistered ATV and off-highway motorcycle and no ATV or OHM safety. Numerous calls regarding the upcoming firearms deer season were fielded and a complaint of an injured wolf was investigated. Douvier also gave a presentation at a local firearms safety class.
CO Andrew Ladzinski (Glenwood) spent most of his time on big-game and fishing enforcement. Various hunting equipment was seized from a wildlife management area, as it was left unattended overnight. Enforcement action was taken for angling without a license, not using a navigational light on a watercraft, and various ATV violations.
District 4 – Walker area
Last updated: 2025-10-27
CO Nick Baum (Park Rapids) patrolled the area for small-game hunting, angling, and recreational vehicle traffic. Baum has found varying success for small-game hunters in the area. Waterfowl hunters in the area are finding success on mixed bags of birds. Baum assisted Hubbard County with an investigation involving theft from the DNR resulting in the arrest of a suspect. Baum took enforcement action for various violations.
CO Landyn Saewert (Wadena) patrolled for small-game hunters and ATV traffic. A local trapper reported he had caught a bear in a foothold trap. Saewert assisted the trapper in releasing the bear, which was uninjured. A shining detail was worked with neighboring conservation officers.
CO Patrick McGowan (Cass Lake) worked Winnibigoshish, Leech and Cass lakes during the week. McGowan checked numerous anglers and waterfowl hunters. Enforcement action was taken for transporting a loaded gun in a motorboat, angling without a license, waterfowl stamp violations, and numerous boating violations.
CO Corey Sura (Remer) worked waterfowl-hunting enforcement. Northwest winds during the middle of the week provided some good hunting days for those able to make it out. Sura assisted the Cass County Sheriff’s Office in rescuing four duck hunters who were stranded on Laura Lake after dark due to motor issues.
CO Jacque Johnson (Longville) checked hunting and ATV activity. She followed up on multiple hunting related concerns and assisted at a firearms safety field day.
Walker – vacant.
ATV rec officer – vacant.
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