A hunting influencer who made his reputation hunting big game on public land out West is now facing a slew of charges for a series of alleged wildlife violations in Idaho in December 2024. The criminal complaint against Ryan Lampers was filed in Lemhi County on Aug. 29. It contains two felonies and four misdemeanor charges related to a trophy mule deer buck taken out of season without a tag, a mountain lion taken unlawfully, and a gray wolf that he allegedly killed and then lied about for profit.
The fallout from these charges, entered into judicial court on Sept. 2, was swift. The social media pages for Lampers, who was known as StHealthyHunter, were quickly taken down. One of his sponsors, GOHUNT, had reportedly pulled all Lamper’s content from its platforms by Sept. 4.
But the well-known DIY hunter and nutritionist has at least gotten some support from his own community. On Sept. 7, one of his longtime buddies, a podcaster, hunting filmmaker, and fellow influencer, Brian Call, put out a response video on YouTube. In his video, Call distances himself from his friend while also heaping praise on Lampers, and reminding viewers that everyone is innocent until proven guilty. He also shares an opinion as to why Lampers might have made the decisions he did — if he is indeed guilty of the charges.
“This is a man who I’ve seen do amazing things. Who has suffered with me in places that no one else would want to go and suffer. And who has pulled the rabbit out of the hat so many times,” Call says. “Part of me wonders if he just felt like he needed another rabbit or something.”
Call clarifies, though, that he never hunted with Lampers during the timeframe when the alleged wildlife violations occurred in Idaho. He said the last time they’ve hunted together was March 2024, when they were chasing wolves in Canada for a film titled Blood in the Snow. He said they didn’t get out in the field together at any point after that, as they were “drifting in different directions” while still maintaining their friendship.
“But I can tell you this. Every single thing that I did with Ryan … everything that you have seen us do together — everything where I was present — was done ethically, by the book, to perfection, legally across the board,” Call says. “I can’t speak to these recent events. I can only speak to the ones when I was there. And when I was there, it was flawless. Impeccable.”
For the time being, Call says, he’s going to wait for things to shake out while separating Lampers, his friend, from the actions he’s been accused of in recent weeks.
The most severe charge facing Lampers is felony grand theft by deception, which carries potential prison time. County prosecutors allege that Lampers wrongfully pocketed $1,250 from a federal wolf reimbursement program by claiming he killed the wolf in a different Big Game Management Unit where the payouts were higher. They say he was paid $2,000 instead of the standard $750 in reimbursement, and this difference was enough to meet the $1,000 minimum threshold for a felony grand theft charge in Idaho.
The other felony charge is related to a trophy, 175 4/8-inch mule deer buck that he was in possession of after allegedly killing it unlawfully on Dec.1, without a tag and during a closed season.
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Lampers was also accused of unlawfully killing a mountain lion five days later on Dec. 6. Prosecutors claim that he shot the lion in BGMU 21, where he did not have the proper tag, and then falsified his report to Idaho Fish and Game to show that he’d killed it in a different unit.
In a probable cause affidavit accompanying the charges, IDFG conservation officer Jordan Costner alleges that on Dec. 8, Lampers then shot a wolf in BGMU 21. But Costner says the reimbursement paperwork Lampers sent to The Foundation for Wildlife Management, which reimburses hunters for wolf kills, falsely stated that he’d killed the wolf in BGMU 28. F4WM classifies BGMU 21 as a standard reimbursement unit, with wolves worth $750 a head, while BGMU 28 is classified as an increased reimbursement unit, where one hunter-killed wolf is worth $2,000.
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