Two men who allegedly killed approximately 3,600 birds, including bald eagles and golden eagles, face years in prison and fines up to $250,000 after being indicted by a federal grand jury in Montana.
Simon Paul and Travis John Branson are accused of poaching bald eagles and golden eagles on the Flathead Indian Reservation and elsewhere from January 2015 to March 2021 and then illegally selling them on the black market, according to the indictment posted online by the Daily Montanan.
“During the investigation, law enforcement uncovered messages from Branson and others describing the illegal taking of eagles by stating, ‘[O]ut [here] committing felonies,’ and telling buyers he was ‘on a killing spree’ to obtain eagle tail feathers for future sales,” the indictment states.
They were indicted on one count of conspiracy (penalty is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine), 13 counts of unlawful trafficking of bald and golden eagles (penalty for first offense is one year in prison and a $5,000 fine, second and subsequent conviction is two years in prison and a $10,000 fine), and one count of violating the Lacey Act involving wildlife with a market value in excess of $350 (penalty is five years in prison and a $20,000 fine).
The Lacey Act combats trafficking of illegally taken wildlife, fish or plants.
The indictment details the sale of 13 bald eagle and golden eagle parts or entire birds with the dates each were poached.
“From January 2019 until March 2021, Simon Paul lived near Ronan on the Flathead Indian Reservation, and he was a ‘shooter’ and ‘shipper’ of bald and golden eagles for Travis John Branson,” the indictment reads. “When Branson arrived on the Flathead Indian Reservation, Paul would meet and help kill, transport, and ship bald and golden eagles for future sales on the black market.”
On March 13, 2021, Brandon and Paul used a “previously killed deer to lure in eagles,” and shot and killed a golden eagle that day.
“A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana said they could not comment further on the indictment and case,” the Daily Montanan reported. “Paul and Branson were issued summons to appear in court in Missoula on Jan. 8 for arraignments.”
The Daily Montanan reported that a man from Hardin, Montana, was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay $70,000 in restitution for killing 14 juvenile eagles after he was indicted in May 2022. He was found guilty of three violations of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.
Photos courtesy of Wikipedia Commons and the Missouri Dept. of Conservation.
