A hunter from New York is accused of killing two pet dogs in Ridgefield and he has been denied an application for accelerated rehabilitation, a diversion program for first-time offenders.
WARNING: Some of the details in this story are graphic and you might find them disturbing.
Michael Konschak, 61, of Carmel, New York, is accused of killing two pet German Shepherds belonging to a Ridgefield family while hunting with a crossbow in November, then skinning the animals to keep their pelts, according to the arrest warrant application.
He told police he thought the dogs were coyotes or coydogs and one had been moving aggressively toward him after he killed the other, according to the arrest warrant application.
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The investigation started on Nov. 18 when the Ridgefield animal control officer received reports of two missing dogs.
The two German Shepherds, a 9-year-old female named Leiben, and a 9-year-old male named Cimo, had escaped from the family’s yard in Ridgefield after a bear damaged the chain link fence.
The family had been searching for the dogs for weeks with help from Ridgefield animal control, organized searches and social media only to get the bad news about what happened to their pets.
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Another family member received a text on Dec. 12 from someone who said they had information about the lost dogs and the person sent along a photo of the deceased pets, according to the arrest warrant application.
According to the arrest warrant application, Konschak had contacted a professional taxidermist on Nov. 18 and said he had two coyotes he wanted to have tanned and showed up at his studio.
Upon seeing the animals, the taxidermist said he was 98% sure they were not coyotes and it looked like they might be German Shepherds.
The taxidermist told police he made up an excuse that he could not store the animals and hoped that Konschak would leave and not come back.
During a search of social media, the witnesses police spoke with came across posts about the dogs missing from Ridgefield and recognized them.
On Jan. 5, Konschak and his lawyer met with police and Konschak told investigators that he had been deer hunting on Nov. 18 on Topcrest Lane in Ridgefield, where he had permission to hunt and had been hunting for nearly 30 years, and saw what he thought were two coyotes chasing deer.
He said he shot one with a crossbow that had a scope. Then the other started heading toward Konschak, with “its head down and bearing teeth” and he tried to wave it off, but he killed it when it continued to move toward him, according to the arrest warrant application.
After killing the two dogs, Konschak used a sled to take them back to his home in New York and contacted a taxidermist before he arrived to have the hides tanned because of their unique color, according to the arrest warrant application, but the taxidermist said he did not have room to store the animals, so Konschak skinned them himself.
Konschak also told police that he discarded the pelts because he did not like the way they came out, but police said they learned he had tossed the pelts after learning that police launched an investigation.
Part of the police investigation also included speaking with a member of the deer management implementation committee for Ridgefield who said that hunting is never allowed in the area because it is close to a Ridgefield elementary school.
And the owner of the property where Konschak was hunting also told police that the signature on the private land consent form was not hers, according to the arrest warrant application.
Police said the investigation was turned over to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection once they determined that the dogs were reported to have been killed.
In a statement, DEEP said they've thoroughly investigated the case and Konschak was subsequently arrested. Officials said the State's Attorney's Office is prosecuting the case.
Konschak has been charged with tampering with evidence, forgery, interfering with an officer, archery hunting regulations and violating wild game hunting regulations. He appeared in court Wednesday and his application for accelerated rehabilitation was denied.
Erin Caviola, one of the owners of the dogs, said Wednesday that they knew Konschak should not be accepted into that program and it was good news for the family and the people who signed a petition.
“It gave us hope that this man will never hunt again. It gave us hope that his charges would remain public,” she said.
She added that seeing photos of what happened to her dogs was “horrific.”
“It’s not a normal way for dogs to end their lives and certainty this duo that we had that are the most loving animals,” she said.
Konschak is due in court again on April 12.
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