Western Pennsylvania man sentenced in fishing scandal charged with illegally hunting deer
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A Mercer County man caught cheating at a fishing tournament is facing new charges for allegedly illegally harvesting deer.
Chase Cominsky, 36, of Hermitage is facing multiple wildlife and hunting violations, WKBN reported.
Someone told a state game warden that Cominsky had several mounted deer on the walls of his home that were illegally harvested at night and not during hunting season, WKBN said. On top of that, wildlife officials said Cominsky hasn't been allowed to hunt since 2008 because of previous violations.
There were five illegally harvested antlered deer heads on his walls, some with tags of a person who said they'd never killed a deer, WKBN reported, citing the criminal complaint.
Earlier this year, Cominsky and 43-year-old Jacob Runyan were sentenced to 10 days in jail after they were accused of stuffing fish with lead weights and fish filets in an attempt to win the Lake Erie Walleye Trail tournament in September of 2022. Cominsky also had to give up his boat, worth more than $100,000.
Cominsky was also charged with forgery in February stemming from an incident where WKBN reported employees at a local bowling alley said they received two counterfeit $100 bills from him.
In the hunting case, he's charged with two counts of unlawful killing or taking of big game; three counts of unlawful taking or possession of game or wildlife; two counts of unlawful acts concerning licenses and one count of violation in tagging and reporting big game kills.