WALDPORT – Oregon State Police have cited a Waldport man and a Newport restaurant owner and his son for illegally killing and tagging a bear and storing the meat in the restaurant’s freezer.
Police cited property owner Roy Sanford of Waldport, Shinong Lee and Jackli Lee, both of Newport, for a variety of hunting violations. Shinong Lee is the owner of Lee’s Wok in Newport.
According to a police report, Fish and Wildlife troopers followed up a report of a bear shot Nov. 20 on Sanford’s property on Southwest Flansberg Road just south of Waldport. They determined that Sanford shot the bear without a harvest tag. Police said two other people, including Jackli Lee who had a bear tag, picked up the bear and validated the kill. The man with Lee was not cited.
The bear meat was processed and taken to Lee’s Wok “and placed in a commercial freezer alongside other food served at the restaurant,” police said.
In their report, state troopers said they asked Lincoln County health officials to inspect the restaurant. An inspector visited the restaurant Nov. 22, according to county records, found the bear meat and sport-caught fish in the same freezer as other food and ordered the restaurant closed. It reopened a day later after cleaning and a second inspection.
Living just down the road from where this bear was shot. I have to say that bear was constantly getting into the trash up and down Wakonda Beach Road. He was always in my back yard. He wasn’t scared of humans and lights. We were going to call fish and game but he stopped frequenting the property. Now we know why. Glad we can safely walk around again.
Won’t be eating there ever again.
Hopefully every time a bear gets into someone’s garbage or someone finds a stray animal they don’t think they have the right to shoot it. I will never eat at Lee’s Wok again, ever. I hope they got a huge fine. Clean up your trash and you won’t have the problem. Rarely do the bears ever bother people, same with deer so please don’t go around shooting them for an excuse to kill an animal. Some people put their garbage cans in the garage, some bungie cord them. Just some ideas.
Clearly a nuisance bear and accoring to law, can be shot with no tag, must be turned over to fish and game though. Mr. Lee has also been cited for many fishing violations.