Two men charged after 'killing spree' of 3,600 birds, including bald eagles, prosecutors say

Federal prosecutors in Montana charged two men for allegedly killing 3,600 birds, including bald eagles, and selling them on the black market.

Simon Paul and Travis John Branson were accused of killing the birds on the Flathead Indian Reservation in western Montana and elsewhere, according to court documents filed Dec. 7 in Missoula. The killing of bald and golden eagles is a violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.

According to the indictment, the pair illegally shot the birds and sold parts or all of the eagles between January 2015 and March 2021.

They were charged with violating the Lacey Act, a law that bans trafficking of illegally taken wildlife, fish, or plants. They also face 13 counts of trafficking bald and golden eagles, and one count of conspiracy.

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Branson bragged about going 'on a killing spree'

Prosecutors alleged that in December 2020, Branson sent a text with a picture of a Golden Eagle tail set to a purchaser and got a PayPal purchase that same day. Two days later, he shipped the set to Texas, and a couple of days later, he received a PayPal payment for it.

The pair allegedly used a dead deer to bait eagles so they could shoot them, the indictment said.

Branson also allegedly bragged about "committing felonies" and going "on a killing spree", and about the "significant sums of cash" the pair made from the sale of the killed birds.

Bal eagle a protected species

The Bald Eagle has been the national emblem of the United States since 1782. The bird was on the endangered species list until 2007 when it was delisted because their population began to recover. The bird was on the verge of extinction before then as their loss of habitat and hunting threatened their survival since the mid-1900s, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Despite being delisted, they're still a protected species.

Under the Bald Eagle Protection Act, killing the iconic bird is prohibited. The law enacted in 1940 makes it a criminal offense to "take" any part of a bald eagle, which includes killing one.

Paul and Branson are expected to appear in court for their arraignment in January.