Montana Man Sentenced After Poaching Big Nontypical Buck

A Montana man was recently sentenced for poaching a unique whitetail after attempting to claim it as a legitimate archery kill. According to a Facebook post by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP), game wardens began investigating 23-year-old Tony Zimbleman in 2025 after receiving a tip from a concerned citizen.

At first, Zimbelman denied wrongdoing, claiming to have shot the trophy whitetail with archery gear during archery season in Pondera County, which is in north-central Montana. Eventually, though, he admitted to having actually shot the deer with a rifle one day before archery season opened.

Zimbelman’s case is particularly notable because of the size of the buck he poached: The nontypical whitetail deer reportedly scored 182 B&C, with a unique backward-facing split tine. The buck is not far off of a rare B&C record book status, which has a minimum score of 185. For reference, the Treasure State has only recorded 59 record-book nontypical whitetails throughout history.

For Zimbelman, however, all that big buck will garner is serious punishments. He agreed to a plea deal in the Montana Ninth Judicial Court for Misdemeanor Unlawful Possession of Wildlife. His sentence includes a suspended six months of jail time, fines and restitution totaling $3,000, and a two-year ban on hunting, fishing, and trapping.

“This case came about because of an initial tip from a concerned sportsman, and the assistance and support from people like that are incredibly valuable to us,” said game warden sergeant Mike Krings, who led the investigation. “Private citizens act as extra eyes and ears in the field for game wardens and help us preserve fair chase opportunities for the vast majority of Montana hunters who do things the right way.”

Even with the help of citizens, it’s challenging for wildlife officials to bust poachers like Zimbelman. A recent report published by the Boone and Crockett Club found that 96% of poaching cases go entirely undetected, and that the annual “replacement cost” of animals illegally taken is $1.13 billion nationwide. That’s a staggering amount of money and resources being stolen from the public trust.