Former Utah Wildlife Official Charged in Illegal Hunting Scheme

August 29, 2024

Wade Raymond Heaton, 51, knowingly broke the law by using corn feed to lure animals toward paying clients waiting in deer blinds, according to court documents filed in Kane County this week. Heaton, also a Kane County commissioner, joined the Utah Wildlife Board in 2019 and served until his resignation in October 2023 — 2 months after wildlife officials began investigating reports of illegal baiting.

Prosecutors charged Heaton with a pattern of unlawful activity, a second-degree felony. Heaton also faces six counts of wanton destruction of protected wildlife, three counts of conspiracy, and one charge of taking, transporting, selling, or purchasing protected wildlife. Gear Junkie