FINDLAY, OH – Two Lucas County residents were recently convicted in Henry County Common Pleas Court following a two-year poaching and theft investigation by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Division of Wildlife.
Edward Polansky, 28, of Holland, and Rodney Polansky, 33, of Toledo, were convicted of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, a felony in the 1st degree, and failure to comply with an order of a police officer, a felony in the 3rd degree.
The investigation began in the fall of 2015, when the ODNR Division of Wildlife received multiple theft reports from hunters who had their vehicles broken into while hunting on public lands in Williams, Fulton, Henry, and Lucas counties. Also, during this time the ODNR Division of Wildlife received several deer poaching complaints that were later connected to the Polanskys as a result of the investigation.
A break in the case came in December of 2016, when a hunter witnessed the Polanskys break into his vehicle. This led to the Polanskys arrest and the execution of multiple search warrants by the ODNR Division of Wildlife. The search warrants recovered numerous stolen items including firearms and other hunting related equipment, a snow blower stolen from the ODNR Division of Wildlife, and several illegally taken and possessed deer antlers. In total, 28 victims reported 177 items stolen over a two-year period.
Edward and Rodney Polansky were sentenced to four years in prison, to be served consecutively, and five years of post-release control. Both men lost their hunting, fishing, and trapping privileges for ten years. All evidence was forfeited to the state and items belonging to the victims were returned. The men were ordered to split the payment of $30,823.56 in restitution, to be paid to the victims for damages and loss of property, and to the state for six deer taken or possessed unlawfully. A total of $3,006.44 in court costs was also ordered to be paid.
A special thanks to the thirteen different law enforcement agencies, including two out of state agencies, that worked alongside the ODNR Division of Wildlife on this case, as well as, Henry County Common Pleas Court, Judge John Collier and Prosecutor Gwen Howe-Gebers.
The public can report wildlife violations through the Turn-In-A-Poacher (TIP) Program. Established in 1982, TIP allows Ohioans to call a toll-free number from anywhere in the state to report wildlife violations. Calls regarding wildlife violations can be placed anonymously at 1-800-POACHER (800-762-2437).
