Pulaski, NY logger stealing timber

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That is such a shame to see. It is easier to understand honest mistakes regarding property lines but this guy sounds like a dirtbag.
 
I have surveyed and estimated a few timber thefts over the years. One thing that I never see mentioned is is that the mills who are buying the logs are never held accountable for their actions. FSC certification is one way to cradle-to-grave a tree, but it's expensive-ish and often impossible to prove chain-of-custody. For example, if the log truck driver isn't certified "green", the log, as sold, isn't either, regardless of the land-use management the tree was subject to during its life, nor is the lumber, regardless of the mill's policies or practices. If this chain-of-custody issue was resolved and enforced, it would be near-impossible for stolen logs to make it to market, except on the smallest scale or as finished products, which is not generally what thieves are after.
 
Sure, in this day and age of closing mills, that mill would have to mark up prices for it's end product. The consumer would have to pay more for a product from that particular mill. That would price them out of a tight market.

It is what it is.
 
Geepers I can't believe that crook is still in business. Let me rephrase that, I can't believe he has started yet another logging business. Folks have been chasing him around CNY for decades and he is a slippery scumbag. He has had quite the bag of tricks and he has been using them for a long time.

He was cutting about 1/4 mile away from me on a kid's camp managed by a forester and the trees were marked and numbered. The forester watched things like a hawk but he had to be out of town for a week close to the time Mr. Scumbag was going to be done with the contract. Well, when the forester left town he brought in an extra skidder and some fellers and went to a hacking anything of any value on and around the contract. They estimated he got over $100K worth of logs he was not supposed to cut out of there. He was sued and went out of business from that one but he went back into business later.

Another time he went into a woods and told the owners they would get X amount of money and it was in excess of $100K because the wood was prime stuff, old growth. He made a nice payment of ~$10K at the end of week one and then for the next 3 weeks nothing. By then he had cleared the woods, sold the logs and was long gone. Land owners got nothing.

He was also rumored to be pulling into landings at night or early evening and making off with the best logs. He would pull in like he knew what he was doing and load his truck up and be gone. He was smart enough to know every logger around so if anyone asked any questions he would just say he was hauling for the logger he knew was doing the logging on that land. Some suspected he even had signs of the names of other logging companies that he would put on his truck. He also supposedly got away with that a lot because he would sneak the logs into his own piles on a landing and then it was nearly impossible to prove where they went.

You mention that guy's name anywhere around CNY in the chainsaw shops and you will hear some very colorful language.
 
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