Operation Night Cat: NHPR True Crime Podcast Uncovers Poaching Ring and Prison Abuses
A routine wildlife tip in a quiet New Hampshire neighborhood was never supposed to lead to prison walls. Yet that is exactly where Operation Night Cat, a new three-part investigative podcast from NHPR and OUTSIDE/IN, ultimately arrives.
What begins as a backyard whisper about illegal hunting grows into one of the state’s most complex poaching cases—and then spirals unexpectedly into an examination of alleged abuse and power inside the New Hampshire State Prison for Men.
Hosted by award-winning journalist Nate Hegyi, Operation Night Cat exposes a rarely seen underworld where competition, secrecy and authority collide in unsettling ways.
The story starts with a New Hampshire Fish and Game warden following up on what seems like a minor lead—an anonymous tip about wildlife being taken illegally at night.
But as investigators dig deeper:
Digital “trophy rooms” are uncovered
Secretive online competitions emerge
Dozens of individuals appear connected
Evidence suggests a coordinated poaching operation hiding in plain sight
The initial premise—quiet violations in the woods—quickly dissolves. Instead, the team discovers a structured ring driven by ego, thrill-seeking and an obsession with outsmarting both wildlife officers and each other.
Hegyi and the investigative team spend months reviewing evidence, interviewing sources, and mapping out how this loose network operated freely for years with little suspicion.
A True Crime Investigation That Takes a Dark Turn
Just as Operation Night Cat seems poised to remain a wildlife crime story, the trail sharply veers into something far more disturbing.
Links begin forming—unexpected ones—connecting key figures in the poaching ring to New Hampshire’s prison system. As reporters follow those ties, they uncover:
Allegations of excessive force
Claims of intimidation
Concerns over unchecked authority
Reports of violence behind prison walls
Suddenly, the investigation is no longer about illicit night hunts. It becomes a window into how power can be misused in spaces shielded from public scrutiny.
The shift surprises even the investigative team. What started in the woods now raises questions about oversight, accountability and how vulnerable people are treated within institutional systems.
The People at the Center of Operation Night Cat
Across its three episodes, the series tells the story through the voices of:
Wildlife officers who watched the case expand beyond their jurisdiction
Individuals connected to the poaching network, some speaking publicly for the first time
Experts and former officials who shed light on how such systems can go unchecked
Sources within the prison system who describe conditions rarely acknowledged in official reports
The narrative becomes a layered portrait—equal parts crime thriller, investigative reporting and social exposé.
Inside the Poaching Ring: A Culture of Ego and Competition
The podcast details the social dynamics that fueled the illegal hunts. According to investigators, the ring involved:
Late-night excursions for deer and other wildlife
Competitions to collect the most or rarest kills
Digital groups where participants compared trophies and traded tips
A culture of secrecy reinforced by mutual bragging rights
These hunts were not motivated by survival or necessity. Instead, they were driven by:
Competition
Adrenaline
A desire to break rules without getting caught
Operation Night Cat shows how this culture fostered increasingly reckless behavior—eventually creating the conditions for the investigation to spread beyond wildlife crimes and into the state’s prison system.
When a Wildlife Case Meets a Prison System
The most startling turn in the series occurs when Hegyi and NHPR’s investigative team trace connections between key individuals in the poaching ring and the New Hampshire State Prison for Men.
What they find is troubling:
Testimonies describing mistreatment
Reports alleging physical intimidation
A culture where complaints often disappeared
A system strained by understaffing and lack of oversight
The podcast emphasizes that these accounts paint a picture—not of isolated incidents—but of patterns that deserve public attention and official review.
This widening scope transforms Operation Night Cat from a wildlife crime investigation into a broader exploration of how unchecked authority can harm people when institutions operate out of public view.
Produced by NHPR’s Document Team
Operation Night Cat is developed with Document, NHPR’s award-winning investigative unit known for deep reporting on power, accountability, and systemic failures.
Their involvement signals that the series is not just a dramatic retelling—it is the product of:
Months of field reporting
Extensive public record requests
Interviews with insiders
Review of evidence and digital materials
Collaborations with legal and forensic experts
The result is a narrative that travels from the pristine woods of New Hampshire to the stark corridors of a state prison, revealing how easily harm can go unnoticed when it happens in overlooked environments.
A Story of Hidden Harm and Unseen Victims
At its core, Operation Night Cat challenges listeners to question how systems function—and fail—when secrecy becomes the norm.
The podcast connects:
Wildlife poaching
Online subcultures
Institutional authority
The impact of overlooked victims
The challenges of holding power accountable
It offers a rare, comprehensive view of how seemingly unrelated worlds—rural hunting culture and the prison system—intersect in ways the public rarely sees.
Release Information
Operation Night Cat officially launches today, 20 November 2025, on its dedicated podcast feed after an initial preview run through OUTSIDE/IN and Document.
Listeners can stream all three episodes on:
NHPR
OUTSIDE/IN
Major podcast platforms
The series contains discussions of violence and sensitive themes.
