Bass Pro Shops offers $5,000 reward for return of young man's record-setting whitetail mount

More rewards offered for other stolen Iowa trophies

[May 07, 2008]  SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The fall of 2003 was the first year for 16-year-old Brian Andrews to go bowhunting. The only problem was that he didn't own a bow. Not to let that stop him, he borrowed some outdated archery gear from his sister's boyfriend and started practicing.

Around 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 13, after numerous unsuccessful hunts, Brian arrowed a 26-point Buchanan County, Iowa, record-breaking whitetail. The enormous buck B&C net scored 253 1/8, making it the new non-typical state record and the world's No. 2 bow-taken whitetail that year.

On June 18, 2004, between 8 and 10 p.m., Brian's buck was stolen from the Andrews home.

Almost four years later, Brian's trophy of a lifetime still has not been found and no arrests have been made. To this day, he still can't understand why someone would want to steal the buck he shot and was so important to him. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime deer and irreplaceable," Andrews said.

Outdoor writer Les Davenport, who has been investigating the theft, along with several other ongoing thefts of Iowa trophy whitetails, contacted Bass Pro Shops to see if they would be interested in putting up a reward to help Brian get his deer back. "Bass Pro Shops listened to my story about this young man's deer and without much hesitation agreed to offer a $5,000 Bass Pro Shops gift card to anyone with information leading to the return of Brian's buck and the arrest and conviction of the person or persons who stole it," stated Davenport. "Bass Pro Shops is also going to outfit Brian for this year's bow season."

The Andrews family and the Buchanan Wildlife Association are also offering a $5,000 cash reward for the same results.

"It is our hope that by doing this, someone will come forward with information that will finally get Brian's buck back where it belongs," commented Larry Whiteley, communications manager for Bass Pro Shops. "Maybe with Les bringing attention to all the other stolen Iowa bucks too, it will help get some of these other magnificent animals back to their rightful owners."

Other thefts of Iowa trophy whitetails in 2003 were the Deaton buck with a 198 1/8-inch mainframe, from the Columbus Junction area, and Jack Bell's 235 7/8-inch non-typical. In September 2005, eight whitetail mounts were stolen from Leroy Brinks' cabin near La Porte City. More recent robberies include a 192-inch non-typical stolen from Jim Nagle of Evansdale, and in March of this year Jamie Aikey of Waterloo had a 16-point non-typical stolen from his business. Aikey, Deaton and Bell are all offering a $5,000 cash reward for the return of their trophies and the arrest and conviction of those responsible.

If you have any information on the whereabouts of Brian Andrews' buck, contact the Buchanan County Sheriff's Department in Independence, Iowa, at 319-334-2567. If you have information on any other stolen Iowa whitetail mounts, contact the Iowa State Police at 515-725-6090.

[Text from file received from Bass Pro Shops]