Pennsylvania Game Commission: New Jersey Man Jailed On Multiple Criminal And Game Charges

DALLAS, Feb. 1, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Multiple charges have been filed against Mark Nicholas Jarema, 37, Leesburg, NJ, for dozens of criminal and game code violations.  Jarema was extradited on Monday, Jan. 28, from New Jersey Mid-State Correctional Facility, Wrightsville, NJ, by Wayne County Game Commission Wildlife Conservation Officer (WCO) Frank Dooley, with assistance from the Wayne County District Attorney's Office and Pennsylvania State Police officers from the Honesdale barracks.   Jarema was arraigned in Pennsylvania before Magisterial District Judge Ronald Edwards in Honesdale.    Jarema's bail was set at $50,000 and he was remanded to the Wayne County Prison. 

Jarema's charges included one felony count of aggravated assault, two misdemeanor counts of simple assault, two felony counts of a felon not to possess firearms, one misdemeanor count of making terroristic threats, and one misdemeanor count of false imprisonment.  Game and Wildlife Code charges included 26 felony counts for the taking or attempting to take big game during a closed season, two first degree misdemeanor counts for killing or attempting to kill deer through the use of lights, one misdemeanor count for discharging a firearm from a motor vehicle, and one summary count for possession of a loaded firearm in a vehicle.  Charges were filed at the office of Judge Edwards, on Oct. 22, 2012.   

The charges stemmed from an incident that occurred between the evening hours of Oct. 23 and the early morning hours of Oct. 24, 2010 in multiple townships of Wayne County.  Dooley had received information from New Jersey Fish and Wildlife Conservation Officer Ann Paul concerning Jarema and his involvement with the killing of multiple deer in Pennsylvania.   An ensuing investigation revealed that Jarema was at a home in the Waymart area on the evening of Oct. 23.  The affidavit of probable cause alleges that while Jarema and a female acquaintance were driving to the woman's residence, Jarema retrieved a 30.06 caliber rifle from the back seat and pointed it at the woman.  For the next several hours, Jarema shot at deer while the female was forced to hold a spotlight while being held at gunpoint.  Officer Dooley said his investigation revealed Jarema repeatedly shot the high-powered rifle at deer with complete disregard for the safety of nearby homeowners.  "He kept a terrified woman at gunpoint while shooting at deer that were yards away from homes and in the line of the residences," said Dooley.  Jarema is accused of recovering several of the dead deer and selling the meat to individuals working at restaurants in the shore area of New Jersey.

Jarema is scheduled for an initial Central Court appearance at the Wayne County Courthouse on February 6, 2013.  "The arrest came about through good interagency cooperation between the Game Commission and other state law enforcement agencies, both here and in New Jersey," said Game Commission Northeast Region Director Daniel Figured.  "Our WCOs increasingly find themselves encountering violators who cannot legally possess firearms. The result is serious criminal charges being filed against these individuals."

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SOURCE Pennsylvania Game Commission