Three trees were illegally felled in the Illahee Preserve last week, spurring an inspection by the sheriff’s office with no leads on the suspect.

Bremerton resident Mike Krouse was walking his dog at about 4 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 21 when he saw a man wearing tan Carhartt apparel cutting alder trees in the preserve.

“The guy was just about 75 feet off the trail cutting trees with an axe,” Krouse said.

Krouse said he reported the activity to 911. A sheriff’s sergeant found two chopped down alder trees in the area of the incident, according to reports. The suspect was no longer in the area and was not located, the report said. The trees were not taken away, but left at the site of the incident.

Dori Leckner, parks superintendent at the Kitsap County Parks and Recreation, said the suspect may have been “an angry citizen taking out his frustrations on the trees.”