According to the charging documents, the man proudly displayed his trophy kill in Facebook posts, posing with the mountain lion.
According to court documents obtained by 5 On Your Side, a mountain lion was illegally killed in Missouri after traveling a minimum of 400 miles from its home in Nebraska.
Joseph Licklider, the suspect, confessed to shooting the animal in Iron County on November 16th. As a result, he was charged on Thursday with taking a protected species of wildlife, according to court documents.
A Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) agent responded to the incident where Licklider confessed to shooting the mountain lion while it was walking away from him, from a deer hunting tree stand. The animal managed to run about 50 yards before succumbing to its injuries.
Mountain lions, a species that is protected in Missouri, can only be legally killed in certain circumstances, such as when they are attacking livestock, domestic animals, or humans.
After conducting a month-long investigation, it was concluded that Licklider’s actions were not justified in killing the mountain lion.
This conclusion was based on various factors, including photos that were shared on Facebook, which depicted Licklider and others posing with the deceased animal.
It is important to note that 5 On Your Side has chosen not to share these photos, as the other individuals involved have not faced any charges.
The mountain lion that was killed had double ear tags with the label “NE125,” which suggests that it had been previously marked by the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission.
It is estimated that the mountain lion had traveled a distance of at least 400 miles from the closest point in Nebraska to Missouri before reaching Iron County.
In a previous incident, a Nebraska mountain lion met a similar fate after embarking on a remarkable journey. In 2022, the Associated Press documented the killing of a mountain lion in Montana, which had traveled an impressive distance of over 250 miles from Nebraska’s Pine Ridge region.
Both MDC and Nebraska Game & Parks have chosen not to disclose any further information regarding the investigation, as it is still ongoing.