BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A man helped kill at least 118 eagles to sell their feathers and body parts on the black market as part of a long-running wildlife
FILE - This undated image from a court document provided by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana shows golden eagle feet recovered by law enforcement officers from a Washington state man's vehicle. BILLINGS, Mont. — A man helped kill at least 118 eagles to sell their feathers and body parts on the black market as part of a long-running wildlife trafficking ring in the western U.S. that authorities allege killed thousands of birds, court filings from prosecutors show.
“It was not uncommon for Branson to take upwards of nine eagles at a time,” prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Montana wrote in a Tuesday court filing. “Not only did Branson kill eagles, but he hacked them into pieces to sell for future profits.” Branson’s attorney disputed the prosecutors’ claims and said they overstated the number of birds killed. The prosecution’s allegation that as many as 3,600 birds died came from a co-defendant, Simon Paul, who remains at large. Branson’s attorney suggested in court filings that the stated death toll has fueled public outcry over the case.
Branson and Paul grew up in the Flathead Reservation area. Since their indictment, Paul has been hiding in Canada to evade justice, according to Nelson.Investigators documented the minimum number of eagles and hawks killed through Branson’s text messages, prosecutors said. Two years of his messages were not recovered, leading prosecutors to say the “full scope of Branson’s killings is not captured.”Bald and golden eagles are considered sacred by many American Indians. U.S.
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