The Ripper of Port A
It was wintertime, 2009 – an unusually warm day. The body could be seen floating face down in an eddy where the west wind and the outgoing tide held it in place about 10 ft. off the bulkhead that ran along the Corpus Christi Ship Channel near the Station Street Pier in Port Aransas.
The initial call that went out to law enforcement gave a description of the killer, a heavyset man in his 70s, and the out-of-state license plate number of his SUV.
When the first law enforcement officer arrived at the pier, she immediately saw a man matching the description standing at the rear of an SUV with Wisconsin plates.
As she approached her new suspect, she caught a glimpse of the victim’s lifeless body spinning in the eddy. She made no effort to render any type of aid or retrieve the body, because it was obvious that there was nothing that could be done.
When she got within earshot of the suspect, she dispensed with the usual pleasantries and got straight to point, saying, “State game warden,” and as she pointed in the direction where she had seen the body, she continued, “I have witnesses who’ll swear you killed that brown pelican over there.”
The man looked. The warden looked. The pelican was gone.
The man smiled. “I don’t see a pelican, ma’am.”
The “body” had escaped the eddy and drifted off out of sight.
The call that brought Game Warden Nikki Spatz to this scene was an Operation Game Thief (OGT) report that had been made by a fisherman on the pier who had witnessed the whole incident.
The witness said that a man who was cleaning fish at the cleaning station got upset with a pelican trying to steal a meal, so he grabbed it and slit its throat with his filet knife.
The witness saw the pelican reel back and fall into the water, where it flapped a while before bleeding out.
Several people who were on the pier at the time saw the slaying. They also witnessed the man calmly wipe the pelican blood off his blade before
resuming his task.
The timing of the sinking of the bird couldn’t have been worse for Nikki, because the man was emboldened by the sudden disappearance of the evidence.
Nikki said, “You know, and I know, sir, that it was there. Brown pelicans are a protected species. I need to see some identification and your fishing license.”
The man complied, but he wasn’t done being a jerk.
As Nikki pulled out her ticket book to issue the citation, the man said, “You don’t have any proof, and even if you did, I don’t live in Texas. I’m not paying no fine.”
“Well then, sir, the brown pelican is protected federally by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, so I can always turn the case over to a US Fish and Wildlife game warden and they can track you down in Wisconsin or wherever.”
Rolling his eyes, the man said, “Why don’t you go after some real law breakers instead of picking on the tourists out here on the pier?”
Nikki ignored the question, informed him of his appearance date and said, “I need you to sign here, sir. It’s not a plea of guilty, just a promise you’ll contact the judge.”
The man signed the ticket and Nikki cut him loose.
Yep - Jack the Ripper never got caught, but “The Ripper of Port A” wasn’t so lucky.
Surprisingly, he paid the fine and restitution without issue.
Operation Game Thief: For violations currently in progress, call 800 792GAME (4263) - 24/7.
TEXT: To send an anonymous tip via text message to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, text the keyword TXOGT and your tip to 847411.
APP: Download the Texas OGT app for iOS and Android.
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