Here is the background. A friend was muzzleloader hunting on Monday of ML season on a farm he rents. Shot at and wounded a nice buck. Followed the blood trail till it ended at a state road. Took a while to get there because it crossed several properties and he had to keeping getting permission. Once it crossed to the south side of the road he couldn't find any trace of it.
Thursday of that week another guy was coyote hunting in the woods a few hundred yards south of where the trail ended. He finds the dead buck and cuts the head off and takes it, on the way out the landowner sees it. This landowner later heard about my friend wounding buck and told him about it.
My friend is hoping the guy is willing to part with it(probably will for a price). As far as we know the guy that found it never contacted the game warden or had it tagged. If the guy gives it up is there a way that my friend can legally possess it?
It's a 10 point, 22" wide 7-8" G2s relatively even. No record book but it would be my friend's best buck. We was sick about it right after it happened. He's accepted how it turned out and if he can't get the rack he'll be content with a pixs.
Thursday of that week another guy was coyote hunting in the woods a few hundred yards south of where the trail ended. He finds the dead buck and cuts the head off and takes it, on the way out the landowner sees it. This landowner later heard about my friend wounding buck and told him about it.
My friend is hoping the guy is willing to part with it(probably will for a price). As far as we know the guy that found it never contacted the game warden or had it tagged. If the guy gives it up is there a way that my friend can legally possess it?
It's a 10 point, 22" wide 7-8" G2s relatively even. No record book but it would be my friend's best buck. We was sick about it right after it happened. He's accepted how it turned out and if he can't get the rack he'll be content with a pixs.