Minnesota #DNR Conservation Officer Reports-July 6, 2026

CO Tom Hutchins (Crookston) reports working mostly boating and angling enforcement during the week. Multiple contacts were made on area lakes and rivers. Various angling and boating related violations were encountered.

CO Jamus Veit (Bemidji #1) worked the busy Independence Day holiday patrolling local lakes and trails with neighboring officers, focusing on boating and ATV safety enforcement. Plenty of people took advantage of the nice weather over the weekend to spend time with friends and family on the water. Time was also spent working a boating enforcement detail on the Whitefish chain and assisting Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office with watercraft related incidents on Movil and Turtle River Lake.

CO Andrew Goodman (Perham) worked the busy Independence Day Holiday weekend on area waterways. The weather cooperated for most of the area, making water recreation the most common activity observed. A few ATVs and anglers were contacted. Boating law and safety compliance was relatively high, but too many watercrafts were found with insufficient number of Personal Floatation Devices. Additional violations included over capacity, gunwale/transom riding, inoperable safety equipment and no navigation lights after sunset.

CO Jake Swedberg (Detroit Lakes) spent time patrolling area lakes during the busy holiday weekend. Other time was spent training with K9 Axel and assisting area agencies with evidence searches. Enforcement action was taken for several different boating violations, transporting aquatic macrophytes, and removing aquatic plants without a permit.

CO Curtis Jepson (Osage) spent much of the week on ATV, recreational boating, and angling activities. Even with spotty, quick-moving thunderstorms over the holiday, boaters made the best of it and got out on the water. A common boating safety violation was not having a type IV flotation device on board watercraft and a personal flotation device on non-motorized watercraft.

CO Angela Warren (Mahnomen) spent time on angling and boating activity and performed AIS compliance checks. Patrol was conducted for ATV and off road vehicle activity. Officer Warren assisted White Earth Police and Becker County deputies with a possible missing child complaint. A call of a sick/injured eagle was investigated, resulting in the eagle being transferred to the raptor center for treatment/rehab.

CO Bill Landmark (Moorhead) spent the week focused on boat and water safety enforcement in the Moorhead Station. Many boaters and a few anglers were out enjoying the nice weather over the Independence Day Holiday Weekend. Overall compliance with boating safety and laws was good. Calls from the public included reports of suspicious deceased squirrels and a deer stuck in the mud. Enforcement action was taken for a variety of boating violations, with no navigation lights, after hours PWC operation, and PWCs jumping wakes or operating too close to swimmers being the most common violations.

CO Grey Corbus (Pelican Rapids) spent the week monitoring boating, angling and ATV activity, with summer in the lakes region in full swing. The Independence Day weekend kept Corbus busy with most lakes having high activity levels, despite some rain and hail spurts. Corbus assisted Otter Tail County with a jet ski accident on Pelican Lake. Enforcement action was taken for various boating and alcohol related violations, including operating a motorized watercraft while impaired.

CO Brady Manteufel (Bagley) patrolled area lakes and ATV trails in the station and region for the holiday. Some enforcement action was addressed with not having enough lifejackets or Type IV throwable devices and expired registration, but overall a very high compliance on safety and registration was observed in Polk and Clearwater County. Fishing success was also still reported as good. Assistance was also provided to Beltrami County on an area lake.

CO Ryan Schaefer (Bemidji #2) spent this past week checking local anglers and monitoring ATV activity, as many folks were out enjoying the Independence Day holiday weekend. Fishing reports were steady, with good numbers of pan fish being seen in most live wells. CO Schaefer assisted Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office with a boating accident / drowning incident on an area lake. CO Schaefer also spent time working alongside other COs patrolling area ATV trails. Enforcement action was taken regarding individuals failing to have their fishing license in possession, riding on the gunwales of watercraft, failing to have enough life jackets on board a watercraft, failing to stop at STOP signs / not wearing seat belts while operating an ATV, and failing to allow AIS watercraft inspections. CO Schaefer wants to strongly remind individuals to wear their life jackets while on watercrafts, and wear seatbelts / helmets while operating ATV’s.

CO Hanna Wood (Fergus Falls) spent the week focused on angling and recreational vehicle enforcement. A complaint about baby crocodiles in a lake was investigated with CO Znajda and found to be children’s toys.

CO Tricia Plautz (Henning) spent the busy holiday weekend on area lakes focusing on boating enforcement and safety. Overall compliance was good for the amount of boat traffic observed. Fishing activity was worked along with invasive species and ATV enforcement. An injured owl was reported and contact was made with the Raptor Center.

CO Ryan Brown (Elbow Lake) reports a huge turnout on the waterways over this Nation’s Birthday. Overall compliance was good with a few violations encountered including, Northern within the protected slot, Watercraft registration issues, and no angling license in personal possession.

CO Shane Osborne (Evansville) checked fishermen, boats, ATV’s and AIS. Life jacket and PWC violations were the most common boating violations encountered over the weekend. Injured animal calls were received and handled.

CO Jake Homan (Alexandria) spent the week patrolling Douglas County for angling, boating, and ATV activities. The warm weather brought many people out for the 4th of July weekend. Enforcement action was taken for a variety of boating violations, an overlimit of sunfish, and a DWI.

CO Felicia Znajda (Osakis) spent a busy holiday weekend patrolling the lakes in her station for angling and boat and water safety. She reports heavy activity on all of her lakes with fishing without a license being a common violation. Although crocodiles are not native to Minnesota, for the safety of the public she responded to a live crocodile in the water complaint on a nearby lake. Ultimately, the children in the area returned and collected their crocodile toy without incident.

CO Emily Douvier (Morris) reports working fishing and recreational activity over the holiday weekend. Enforcement action was taken for fishing without a license, no PFD’s, and failure to renew boat registration.

CO Andrew Ladzinski (Glenwood) dedicated his time to boating safety and enforcement over the holiday weekend. A common theme was anglers fishing without purchasing a license. Numerous watercraft safety violations were addressed. He was pleased to see a majority of youth wearing their life jackets while out enjoying the water.

Wheaton – vacant.

CO Michael Cross (Lake George) worked angling, boating, off highway vehicle enforcement throughout the week. Calls for service were taken, and multiple nuisance bear calls were handled. Enforcement action was taken for angling, boating, off highway vehicle, and underage alcohol violations.

CO Nick Baum (Park Rapids) CO Nick Baum (Park Rapids) patrolled the local area for Recreational Vehicle, Boating, and Angling activity. CO Baum found many boaters enjoying the nice weather on the water. CO Baum was accompanied by CO Saewert to patrol Lake Belle Taine for the firework show. Several Conservation Officers assisted Hubbard County SO with getting an injured water-skier off the water. CO Baum took enforcement action of various boating, recreational vehicle and angling violations.

CO Landyn Saewert (Wadena) Worked the busy 4th of July weekend. Time was primarily spent on the water. Several boat and water safety violations were encountered. Personal watercraft operators are reminded they need to be off the water 1 hour before sunset. Time was also spent working ATV complaints. Time was also spent focusing on AIS.

CO Patrick McGowan (Cass Lake) worked a busy 4th of July weekend on Cass County lakes. Numerous boaters were out enjoying the weekend, and area lakes were very busy. Enforcement action was taken for numerous boating and angling violations. CO McGowan also assisted other local law enforcement agencies with calls for service.

CO Jack Lien (Walker) patrolled area lakes and roads during the busy weekend of the 4th. Focus was directed toward enforcing ATV and watercraft activities. Most watercraft violations observed were based around passengers riding on gunwales, rear transom decks, and other areas on the craft that are unlawful while underway. ATV violations observed were registration display and prohibited operation on state highways. Lien reminds the public to practice safe ATV operational practices at all times, especially during busy times. Keep off the prohibited roadways and make sure passengers under eighteen always have a helmet on class one and two ATVs.

CO Levi Brown (Staples) spent the holiday weekend on the water helping to keep boaters safe. Brown also patrolled areas high in ATV use. Throughout the weekend, he spoke with many boaters loading and unloading their watercraft into the lakes about invasive aquatic species and the rules and regulations regarding them.

ATV rec officer – vacant.