Game warden on patrol shot by hunters in El Dorado County

A California Department of Fish and Wildlife game warden was listed in serious condition Saturday at Sutter Roseville Medical Center after being shot the previous night while on routine patrol in a rural area near Georgetown in El Dorado County.

Warden Bob Pera, 35, an 11-year veteran of the agency, was shot in the hand and neck around 8 p.m. or 9 p.m. while he was conducting a compliance check on two hunters, according to Fish and Wildlife spokesman Lt. Patrick Foy.

“We might sit back and watch for a certain period of time and then make contact,” Foy said. “At some point before he was going to make the contact, there was a shot fired and he was hit.”

Foy said that the two hunters, whose names he did not disclose, were cooperative after the shooting and that “they ultimately rendered aid” to Pera while he was calling for medical assistance and backup.

El Dorado County Sheriff spokesman Sgt. Chris Felton said so far nobody had been arrested in connection with the shooting, which is still under investigation.

This story was originally published February 15, 2014 at 9:05 PM with the headline "Game warden on patrol shot by hunters in El Dorado County."