OPERATION GAME THIEF (OGT) is a silent witness, anti-poaching program that encourages the public to report any suspicious activity or knowledge about a poaching violation. The toll-free hotline is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year to report wildlife violations.

POACHING is the illegal take of game or fish, trespassing, littering, theft, or destroying property.

POACHERS are thieves that are stealing Arizona's most precious natural resource- WILDLIFE! Poaching interferes with the ability to manage wildlife and wildlife habitat effectively, it negatively impacts the ability to enjoy the outdoors, and reduces opportunities to hunt and fish in Arizona.

There are limited commissioned officers in the Arizona Game and Fish Department and many of these officers only do enforcement part-time. The Department relies on the citizens of Arizona to assist in the reduction of wildlife violations, and REWARDS are available to those citizens that report information that leads to an arrest.

CALLERS will be kept CONFIDENTIAL if they so desire. This program began in 1979 and is the second oldest in the country providing a long record of proven credibility. Last year almost 720 calls were received on the hotline that resulted in cases being forwarded to officers.

CELLULAR PHONE calls to the OGT hotline have proven to be extremely beneficial. An officer's chances of apprehending the violator while he is still in the woods is greatly enhanced when the offense is reported immediately. Most calls to the Operation Game Thief hotline are now TOLL-FREE. If your service is provided by either Verizon or Alltell, simply dial # HUNT and you will be connected to the hotline.

THE HOTLINE has long tentacles. A caller may place a toll-free call not only within Arizona, but also from its border states that include Utah, New Mexico, Nevada and the southern half of California.

REPORTED VIOLATIONS are usually prioritized based on the severity and/or the legitimacy of the information provided. Because the Department has limited commissioned officers statewide, it is not possible to have an immediate response to every call. All violations receive the highest priority and every attempt is made to immediately dispatch an officer to the scene. Even still, officers have extraordinarily large patrol areas in addition to other responsibilities, and it is not always possible for an immediate response to a violation. This is why it is important that you act as a GOOD WITNESS so that follow-up by an officer can be conducted. Although an immediate response is not always possible, rest assured that your call and assistance is still important.

All reporting violations are logged, tracked, and analyzed for trend data to determine violation hot-spots. Special projects, patrols, or criminal investigations are conducted directly as a result of the trend data. No matter the degree of the reported violation, your tip usually makes the difference on whether a violator will be apprehended.

Do the right thing, call today.