A Washington man who conspired to hunt and kill bald and golden eagles and hawks on the Flathead Indian Reservation for black-market sales was sentenced Thursday to three years and 10 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $777,250 in restitution, according to the U.S. attorney’s office for the District of Montana.
Travis John Branson, 49, of Cusick, and formerly of the Flathead Reservation, pleaded guilty in March to conspiracy and two counts of unlawful trafficking of bald and golden eagles, the department stated.
According to court documents, from approximately January 2015 to March 2021, Branson and others hunted and killed eagles on the Flathead Reservation, selling them on the black market across the U.S. and abroad.
Branson reportedly traveled from Washington to the reservation, where he shot, transported, and shipped bald and golden eagles for future illegal sales.
The department stated that its investigation revealed Branson and others killed around 3,600 birds.