An investigation by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources into the alleged beating death of a mute swan on Sechrist Lake has still not been concluded. A Saturday meeting among property owners of the Barbee Chain of Lakes where it happened is expected to see a large attendance.

Public outrage followed when Jack and Linda Doyle said they saw three men in a pontoon come onto Sechrist Lake on Saturday, March 30. The Doyles are confident they saw the men shoot a male swan with a pellet gun. One of the men used a kayak to row out and rope the bird and drag its still fighting body to the boat where the Doyles said it was mercilessly beaten to death with a boat oar.

The three men who were on the pontoon are all believed to be board members of the Barbee Lakes Property Owners Association.

Four days after the killings, which claimed a pair of mute swans that had lived on Sechrist Lake for as many as 9 years, investigating conservation officers Nathan Hooley and Ashlee Jackson determined the men who took part in the killings did not violate any DNR rules. The reason, according to Lt. William Browne, was that the Doyles did not have a clear view and could not say with certainty that the boat oar actually struck the bird.

All three of the men, one of whom has been identified as George Hiatt, a resident of Irish Lake, told investigating officers no swan was beaten. According to Browne, the men each told the officers that only a pellet gun was used to euthanize the swans.

According to the preliminary investigation, Browne said the officers reported, “The men said the paddle was used to get (the boat) out of the mud and muck and it was used to reach the dead bird and pull it to the boat. Did anyone actually see the paddle strike the swan? No one did. Due to the position of the pontoon the Doyles couldn’t see the paddle actually hitting the bird.”

State law requires the bird corpses to be destroyed or buried within 48 hours of the killing so the conservation officers were not able to inspect the swans themselves.

On Saturday, the Barbee Lakes Property Owners Association will meet at 8 a.m. in the North Webster Community Center. Hiatt and Chuck Brinkman, both of whom are named on a DNR permit authorizing them to destroy mute swans on the entire Barbee Chain of Lakes, are board members. The third man, who has not been identified by the DNR, is also believed to be a BLPOA board member.

A number of Barbee Lakes property owners plan to attend the meeting to voice their disdain with the killings.

Browne said he anticipates the investigation will be completed soon.

See related stories:
Brutal Swan Killings Spark Public Outrage
DNR Protocol On Swan Killings Uncertain
DNR: ‘No Violations’ In Swan Killings
DNR: Swan Killings Investigation Continues