ARNOLD, Pa. — An Arnold police officer is on unpaid administrative leave and facing charges from the Pennsylvania Game Commission.
Jacob Pollick said he legally shot a trophy buck on Oct. 10 during the day, in the woods behind the Walmart near the Pittsburgh Mills.
The next day, he said he had his friend help him load up the deer. Pollick said he had been tracking the animal for about three years.
Last week, the Pennsylvania Game Commission charged Pollick for unlawful taking of the deer, as well as tampering with evidence and intimidating a witness.
According to the criminal complaint, Pollick is accused of hiding evidence before officers got to his house.
He denies that and said he was moving two deer heads to his front porch to show officers.
As for the witness intimidation, the game commission said Pollick told his friend to forget the timeline of events from the day the deer was shot if his friend was subpoenaed to testify.
Pollick said he never told his friend to lie and said this is all a big misunderstanding.
Pollick said he tagged and reported the deer within a day of harvesting it.
According to the complaint, the game commission seized several deer heads at Pollick’s house because he couldn’t provide satisfactory evidence the deer were taken lawfully.
Pollick said he hopes this all gets resolved in court and he can go back to work as an officer. The game commission said this is an ongoing case and wouldn’t provide more information.
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