Introducing: Operation Night Cat

3 min

•Oct 30, 20259 months ago

Summary

Outside/In announces a three-part investigative mini-series called Operation Night Cat, produced in partnership with NHPR's document team. The series follows a New Hampshire Fish and Game warden's year-long investigation into an illegal poaching ring involving trophy hunting, digital trophy rooms, and law enforcement corruption.

Insights

Illegal wildlife poaching has evolved into a sophisticated underground network with digital documentation and competitive trophy-hunting culture
Law enforcement corruption in wildlife management represents a systemic vulnerability where those sworn to protect animals become perpetrators
The intersection of animal abuse and human crime suggests potential behavioral patterns worth investigating across criminal populations
Digital platforms and social media enable coordination and documentation of illegal hunting activities at scale

Trends

Rise of digital trophy documentation in illegal wildlife trafficking networksGamification of illegal hunting activities compared to video game mechanicsCorruption within environmental enforcement agencies and wildlife managementUnderground hunting communities operating with impunity in rural areasCross-jurisdictional challenges in prosecuting organized poaching rings

Topics

Illegal wildlife poaching and trophy huntingFish and Game enforcement and corruptionDigital trophy documentation systemsRural crime investigation techniquesAnimal abuse and human crime correlationLaw enforcement accountabilityWildlife trafficking networksNew Hampshire criminal investigations

Companies

New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR)

Produces the Outside/In podcast and the investigative document team behind Operation Night Cat

People

Nate Hedges

Host of Outside/In who spent a year following the Operation Night Cat poaching investigation case

Ron Arsenault

Small town cop whose investigation into illegal hunting led to discovery of organized poaching ring

Quotes

"It's like they're playing Grand Theft Auto at buying their house except with animals"

Unknown•Trailer segment

"There's blood everywhere. I absolutely smoked them."

Unknown•Trailer segment

"If you're abusing animals like this, are you abusing humans?"

Nate Hedges•Trailer segment

"They can do whatever they want and get away with it because nobody can see over that wall."

Unknown•Trailer segment

Full Transcript

Hey folks, Nate here, here to give you a heads up about something that we've been working on for a very long time. Starting next week, our next three episodes will be part of a special mini series called Operation Night Cat. I know right? Great name. We've been partnering with our colleagues on the award-winning investigative team document here at NHPR to help us put this together and I cannot wait for you to hear it. We whipped up a little trailer so you can get a taste of what you're in for. So check it out. Tell your friends and we'll see you next week. Ron Arsenault was a small town cop with New Hampshire's Fish and Game Department. Someone who spent his days nabbing people for hunting out of season or fishing with illegal minotraps. The one day when he landed the bust of a lifetime. Operation Night Cat. And it all started with four or five deer walking across the road. Because if you look at it all the way to the beginning, it was like, why the deer crossed the road? To kill a bobcat. It's like, it's crazy. I'm Nate Hedgie and for the past year I have been following this case. A poaching investigation that led Ron from the quiet woods of New Hampshire into the shocking world of illegal hunts, digital trophy rooms and a twisted game of one-upmanship. There's blood everywhere. I absolutely smoked them. It's like they're playing Grand Theft Auto at buying their house except with animals. Just killed a big buck. Yeah, can't even talk. Gray Fox, Bobcat. Gray Fox, Bobcat. Red Fox, Red Fox. Gray Fox, Gray Fox. Red Fox, Coyote. Bobcat, Coyote. Crow. This is a story about what happens when the rules of the hunt are thrown out the window. And the very people sworn to uphold the law become the ones who break it. If you're abusing animals like this, are you abusing humans? The New Hampshire Public Radio's document team and outside in comes a special three-part series, Operation Night Cat. We deal with really bad people. There's some people that society wouldn't be worse off without. And they can do whatever they want and get away with it because nobody can see over that wall. The first episode drops November 5th.