US duo charged with killing 3,600 birds including bald eagles to sell on black market | Montana

Two men in the US have been charged with illegally killing around 3,600 birds over several years and selling the parts and feathers on the black market.

A grand jury in Montana charged Simon Paul and Travis Branson on charges of conspiracy, violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and illegal trading.

The two men allegedly killed the birds from January 2015 to March 2021, on or around the Flathead Indian Reservation in the west Montana, according to federal prosecutors. The indictment alleges the two men made “substantial amounts of cash” from the sale of the birds and their feathers, but did not specify how much.

Court records show the pair sold at least one pair of bald eagle wings, four golden eagle tails and one whole golden eagle.

If convicted on all charges, Paul, 42, and Branson, 48, face up to 11 years in prison and $275,000 in fines each. They are expected to appear in court in January.

Court records allege that Branson would travel from out of state to Montana, where Paul acted as a “shooter” and “manufacturer” in the scheme. One tactic the pair used to attract eagles was the use of a previously killed deer.

“The defendants then illegally sold the eagles on the black market for substantial amounts of cash throughout the United States and elsewhere,” prosecutors said in court records.

The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act is a federal law enacted in 1940 prohibiting anyone from “taking” bald or golden eagles, including their parts, without a permit issued by the secretary of the interior.

The bald eagle is considered a success story of the US Endangered Species Act. The bird, which has been the national symbol of the USA since 1782, saw its population decline in the 1960s and 70s due to the effects of the pesticide DDT.

After DDT was banned and the bald eagle was listed for protection under the Endangered Species Act, the bald eagle recovered to where it was remove from the list in 2007.