A Yukon woman has been ordered to give up the riverboat she bought using money earned illegally from guiding a hunt in 2011.

Judge Peter Chisholm ruled Friday morning that Madeleine Caissy, 65, must forfeit her $9,500 boat, motor and trailer for violating the territory’s Wildlife Act.

It’s illegal for a “special guide” – someone authorized to accompany and assist a non-Yukon resident on a hunt – to receive gifts or compensation for doing so.

Caissy pleaded guilty to the charge.

She had a special guide licence in September 2011 when she and her partner took a father and daughter from Quebec on a guided hunt.

They travelled down the Pelly River and shot two moose.

“That part was fine, but the arrangement involved Madeleine Caissy ending up with a boat which was worth almost $10,000,” conservation officer Ken Knutson said this morning.

“That was considered compensation for the hunt, and that’s not allowed.”

As a result, Chisholm ordered Caissy to forfeit the boat.

She’s also banned for two years from hunting and obtaining a hunting licence, and cannot obtain a special guide licence for nine years.

Charges against Caissy’s partner were dropped.

Knutson said it’s legal for special guides to share the costs of gas, groceries and equipment with their visitors. But receiving compensation or rewards is not.

“It’s an incentive for people to illegally outfit,” he said.

“We have an outfitting industry here for that purpose, for people who are from outside of the Yukon who want to hunt,” he said.

Yukon residents who are 18 and older can get a special guide licence to guide a Canadian citizen who doesn’t live in the Yukon. A special guide must accompany the hunter at all times and ensure hunting laws are followed.

“It’s about protecting Yukon wildlife and the industry we have here,” Knutson said.

Wildlife Act and Environment Act violations can be reported confidentially at any time to the TIPP line (1-800-661-0525) or www.env.gov.yk.ca/tipp.