Youth Hunter's First Buck Swiped from Tennessee Processing Facility
Posted 2025-12-15 by
The 10-pointer was Diesel Smith’s first buck, but the cape and antlers are missing. A reward is being offered for their return
Diesel Smith is all smiles behind his first buck, this Tennessee 10-pointer. Unfortunately, all he has for now is the memory of the hunt, as the rack and cape are missing. Image courtesy of Jared Smith.
Jared Smith of Tennessee recently took his 11-year-old son, Diesel, deer hunting. On opening morning of rifle season, which was Nov. 22, a dandy 10-point buck offered the young hunter a shot. Diesel capitalized and tagged his first buck ever. He was on Cloud 9. The warm conditions prompted Smith, who said in his Facebook post that he typically processes his family’s venison, to deliver his son’s buck to a nearby processor, Pete’s Country Meats in Loretto, Tennessee.
The buck is really nice, so Smith noted on the processor’s cut sheet that the deer was to be caped for a shoulder mount, his post said. When the processor called, Smith went to pick up the meat, cape and antlers, but the cape and antlers were missing. And no one had a good answer as to what happened to them. Smith and conservation officers have been searching for the cape and antlers ever since, but without success.
Interestingly, Isaac Moore, a Facebook user who Smith doesn’t know and isn’t associated with, shared Smith’s post 13 hours later, offering a $1,000 reward for the return of the antlers. Moore’s support shows how deer hunters can come together in desperate times.
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Smith said, “I believe I know who has the rack, but I can’t prove it. I’m just hoping that whoever has it just comes forward so that my son doesn’t have to remember his first buck without the rack.
“Responses from the hunting community have been astounding,” he continued. “People have offered Diesel their buck, free gear, and other things to make him feel better. The support we’ve been shown during this time is unreal, and we are thankful for that. And we’re not giving up on this yet. Isaac Moore just messaged me and said that others have contributed resources and that the reward for returning the missing antlers is now $1,500.”
If you have knowledge related to this incident or any leads about the stolen rack’s whereabouts, please contact the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency’s Law Enforcement Division at (615) 781-6580.
