Sublette County Sheriff K.C. Lehr has received more than 7,000 emails about a Wyoming man who reportedly captured and tormented a wolf before killing it, he told Cowboy State Daily on Wednesday.
Some of those are threats.
Lehr said people in his office, as well as Sublette County and Wyoming Game and Fish Department personnel, have been receiving threats — including death threats — stemming from Daniel, Wyoming, man Cody Roberts’ reported capture, torment and killing of a wild wolf in late February.
Roberts and his family have also been receiving threats, as well as the Green River Bar in Daniel, Wyoming, Lehr said. The threats have even impacted other men in Wyoming named Cody Roberts who have nothing to do with the case.
Those making threats have not launched physical attacks in Sublette County so far, said Lehr, adding that about 99% of the callers are from outside Wyoming. And the calls and emails come from all over the world.
He condemned the death threats, both in his interview and in a later press release from his office.
“It disturbs me that people think that way and that it has to come to this,” Lehr said, describing the threats as a misdirected overflow of rage.
Sublette County law enforcement is aware of the situation and has provided extra patrols and monitoring for suspicious vehicles and concerns, Lehr added.
“We are monitoring everything closely,” he said.
Game and Fish handled Roberts’ case, which reportedly resulted in a $250 fine, but Lehr’s office is now reviewing the details to see if other consequences may apply.
‘We’
Cowboy State Daily received an ominous email Wednesday in which a writer threatened violence against Roberts and against the Green River Bar in Daniel, where Roberts reportedly paraded the captured wolf before killing it.
“The retribution against those two is going to be epic,” the sender wrote, also asking for a way to contact the bar owner. “We figure it's best to warn him about the strong rumors of what's going to happen to his building fairly soon.”
Cowboy State Daily sent the email to both the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation and to Lehr.
Hostile And Threatening
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has received a “considerable number” of phone calls, social media messages and emails from concerned constituents, Breanna Ball, WGF spokeswoman, told Cowboy State Daily in a Wednesday email.
Some of those communiques are hostile and threatening.
The agency is monitoring the threats and implementing “protective security measures” to safeguard its employees, a mission Ball said is of the utmost importance.
DCI Keeps A Lookout
The Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation is helping the Wyoming Game and Fish protect its employees during this time, DCI Director Ronnie Jones told Cowboy State Daily on Wednesday.
“It’s very clear to me the safety and security of their employees is of the utmost importance to them, and DCI is providing them any assistance we can to provide them safety and security for their employees,” said Jones, who was hesitant to compromise the added protections by discussing their specifics.
Jones said has not spoken with Lehr about threats toward Sublette County personnel, but DCI would help the county offices in whatever way it could, if the sheriff asked for assistance.
Stop Calling Dispatch
A Wednesday press release from Lehr’s office says the local office understands the outrage, but condemns the use of threats. The statement asks people to use a tip line and email to voice their fury, rather than swamping the county communications center.
“Please understand that such actions endanger the lives and the peace of the residents of Sublette County, state and county employees, and innocent people outside Sublette County not at all involved in the situation,” says the statement, adding that threats of violence against Roberts or his family “are also not appropriate,” and violent and harassing expressions can hinder the investigation by scaring off potential witnesses.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
