Unlicensed hunter shot deer from the driver's seat of his car

The man took his .222 rifle and shot one of the animals from the driver's seat through an open window. Photo / Getty Images

What may have been a magical moonlit moment turned into a South Otago roadside bloodbath, a court has heard.

Fraser Thomas Edmund Jones (39) was driving along a rural road near Owaka with a friend early on December 9 last year when a herd of wild deer crossed in front of them.

"I hate to use the words 'turkey shoot' but he saw those deer crossing the road and it was one temptation too many," counsel Brian Kilkelly told the Dunedin District Court yesterday.

Jones, whose firearms licence had been revoked by police about a decade earlier, took his .222 rifle and shot one of the animals from the driver's seat through an open window.

Yesterday, the Kaka Point resident pleaded guilty to unlawful hunting and unlawful possession of the weapon.

After shooting the deer, the court heard, Jones wasted no time gutting it on the side of the road before placing his choice cuts in the boot of the car.

As he hacked the animal apart, a farmer who had heard the shot arrived on the scene and spoke to the defendant, recording his registration plate.

Jones dumped the unwanted innards in the bush and drove off.

It was more than four months before police executed a search warrant at his home, but there had been no attempt by the defendant to dispose of evidence.

Officers found rifle ammunition in a bedroom drawer, as well as shotgun shells, and the rifle used to kill the deer was located in an unlocked kitchen cupboard.

Jones accepted his role in the 2020 incident but said he thought he was allowed to hunt because a licensed firearm holder was present.

"He did admit that shooting from a vehicle on a road may not be legal," a court summary said.

Mr Kilkelly said Jones was a "very keen shooting, hunting and fishing man" who was stripped of his firearms licence after mental health issues resulted in a brief stay at Wakari Hospital.

Judge David Robinson said firearms cases were always taken seriously by the court because of the potential for catastrophe.

"Inherent in this unlawful hunting charge is the risk posed to the public through shooting in open areas like this," he said.

The judge considered adjourning the hearing for addresses to be assessed for an electronically monitored sentence.

However, he noted Jones' limited criminal history.

The judge sentenced Jones to 250 hours' community work and an order was made for forfeiture of the firearm and ammunition.

- ODT