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Two men are facing federal charges for allegedly running a years-long “killing spree” conspiracy of thousands of birds in Montana.
Simon Paul, 42, and 48-year-old John Branson are facing one count each of conspiracy and violation of wildlife laws, as well as 13 counts of unlawful trafficking of eagles, according to a Department of Justice indictment reviewed by The Independent.
Prosecutors claimed that Mr Paul and Mr Branson hunted and killed more than 3,600 birds, including bald and golden eagles, at the Flathead Indian Reservation and surroundings. They allegedly sold the birds on the black market for large sums of money and shipped them to buyers in the US and overseas.
The defendants allegedly operated the scheme between 2015 and 2021.
According to court documents filed earlier this month, the suspects sent text messages to buyers admitting that they were on “a killing spree” and “out [there] committing felonies.” The indictment described Mr Paul, who lived in Ronan, as the “killer” and “shipper,” while Mr Branson, who resided in Washington state, would sometimes join him within the borders of the reservation to allegedly help kill the birds.
The suspects allegedly used a dead deer to lure in eagles. They then sold the bird’s feathers and obtained funds through PayPal, per the indictment.
Mr Paul and Mr Branson are accused of violating the Eagle Protection Act, which was enacted in 1940 to guard bald eagles, and was prolonged twenty years later to guard the gold eagle as effectively. Hunting and killing eagles, and even taking feathers discovered within the wild, is taken into account a criminal offense within the US.
The Flathead Reservation is home to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, and tribal legislation enforcement was a part of the investigation.
“We just hope that if these individuals are proven guilty that it will serve as a warning to others that we are watching,” Rich Janssen, director of the tribes’ Natural Resources Department informed The Associated Press.
The bald eagle is the US’s nationwide image and each bald and golden eagles are thought-about scared by tribal communities.
There are an estimated 346,000 bald eagles within the US and about 40,000 golden eagles.
Mr Janssen informed the AP that the eagles’ feathers are used for conventional gown and in honour ceremonies.
Mr Paul and Mr Branson are scheduled to be arraigned on 8 January.
They resist 5 years in jail and a $250,000 superb for the conspiracy cost, and as much as a five-year sentence and a $20,000 superb for violating wildlife legislation.
