Burglars make off with trophy deer mounts

Written by Bill Miller

Friday, 07 March 2008

Their names were memorable enough — names like Lumpy, Big Tex and Twisty — but their Boone & Crockett scores were all more than 200. And now they are missing. Eight whitetail trophy mounts belonging to Texas deer breeder Bill Martindale of Dallas were reported stolen Jan. 19 from his ranch house in Bosque County. Martindale has worked 18 years at his Snuff City Ranch, near Iredell, to develop a line of 200-class breeder bucks, and a successful high-fence hunting operation. He has combined genetics from robust northern whitetails and strong south Texas bloodlines to create deer like Twisty, 253 (B&C); Big Tex, 230, and Lumpy, 208. Others missing mounts came from Little Tex, Pay Check and Terminator. All of the prized deer were prominently displayed at the ranch after their deaths. But then someone took bolt cutters to an outside gate. “One of my ranch hands showed up early the next morning and saw the lock was cut off,” Martindale said. “They took everything that wasn’t nailed to the wall. “It makes you feel like your privacy has been violated — big time.” Also stolen were a couple replica mounts, several horn mounts, and some full-body mounts of other animals, including a bobcat. Two dart guns used in the breeding operation and a .222-caliber varmint rifle were also taken, Martindale said. “The definitely knew exactly what they wanted,” he added. “It was probably someone who had been there before or someone who was hired by someone who had been there before.” Bosque County sheriff’s deputies are investigating the burglary, but no arrests have been reported nearly a month later. Meanwhile, Martindale has offered a $5,000 reward for information that could lead to a break in the case. Martindale noted that he is a longtime member of the Texas Deer Association, and he is appealing to his fellow deer breeders to be watching for anyone trying to sell some distinctive whitetail mounts. “I marketed my buying and selling off of those mounts,” Martindale said. “They were pretty well-known around our state, so there’s a good chance they will be recognized.” Images of the deer can be viewed at under the “breeding” section of the Snuff City Web site: www.snuffcityranch.com. Anyone with information about the case can call Sgt. David Pack of the Bosque County Sheriff’s Office at 254-435-2363.

 

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