By CRAIG FREILICH

MASSENA – The owner of a store in St. Lawrence Centre has been fined over possession of a wolf pelt he had displayed in his store.

Chuck Adams of Massena, who owns C&M Sales says he didn’t know it was illegal to own a wolf pelt in New York State when a Department of Environmental Conservation Officer gave him two tickets.

“I didn’t know it was illegal,” Adams said. “Even a detective from the police said he didn’t know. Nobody ever said a word. I was going to buy two more.”

The two tickets were for the sale of an endangered species and one for possession of protected wildlife, DEC said.

In Massena Town Court last week, Adams said, the charges were reduced to possession of a pelt of an endangered species and he paid a fine of $300 plus $2.50 court costs.

“I’ve been to shows all over, and seen them for sale everywhere,” Adams said.

But he said he won’t deal in them anymore and will let others know what he endured.

“I don’t want anything in my store that’s not supposed to be there,” Adams said.

The arrest came about when Environmental Conservation Officer John Ryan heard from a retired ECO about a full-sized grey wolf pelt for sale at a the store in the Massena mall, according to a press release from DEC.

On May 3, Ryan, dressed in plain clothes, stopped into the store to check out the wolf.

The store primarily sells rustic furniture, but also has numerous wild game head mounts for sale legally, according to the press release from DEC.

The store owners told Ryan that the pelt was for sale for $800. Ryan identified himself as a conservation officer, and the owners were cooperative, telling him they had purchased the pelt from an unknown individual, DEC said.

Ryan explained to them the issue of selling endangered species in New York State and provided the couple with copies of the statute.

The pelt was seized and taken into evidence and will be used for educational purposes.