ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A report says the New Mexico Game Commission chair who recently resigned amid allegations that he was an accessory to an unlawful killing of a cougar set up the hunt.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that a Game and Fish investigation says former chairman Scott Bidegain spotted a cougar on his family's T4 cattle ranch near Tucumcari and had a hunting agent call an Oklahoma City lawyer.
The report says the lawyer didn't have a required game-hunting license and habitat management access validation stamp.
According to the report, the lawyer came to Tucumcari on Feb. 9 and met Bidegain. The report says the lawyer shot the cougar and Bidegain snapped a photo.
The department filed charges of unlawful hunting or fishing against Bidegain this month.
