In a case that took years to crack, game wardens say a Green River man used a .22 rifle outfitted with a suppressor made from plastic Coke bottles to illegally shoot five deer in town, according to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.

In connection with the shootings, Timothy Crooks was sentenced to 15 days in jail for wanton waste of big game animals, while charges of using an illegal suppressor were dismissed, according to recently released Game and Fish 2024 law enforcement reports.

The pop-bottle contraption might have done an OK job of quieting the shots, saidVince Vanata of Cody, a Marine Corps veteran and retired law enforcement officer.

But using it was foolish and could have resulted in stiff charges for making and using an illegal suppressor in violation of federal firearms l

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