Wildlife Trafficking Ring Killed at Least 118 Eagles, Prosecutors Say

A Washington man involved in a wildlife trafficking ring that allegedly killed thousands of birds across the western U.S. will face sentencing in federal court next week.
Travis John Branson is accused of playing a key role in the illegal killing of eagles and selling their feathers and body parts on the black market, profiting as much as $360,000 over more than a decade.
Branson, from Cusick, Washington, is set to be sentenced on Sept. 18 for his role in the scheme, which operated mainly on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana.
According to federal prosecutors, the operation killed at least 118 bald and golden eagles between 2009 and 2021.
They said Branson’s network, which sold the body parts for use in Native American ceremonies, netted him a substantial fortune.
“It was not uncommon for Branson to take upward of nine eagles at a time,” prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Montana wrote in court filings.
They also allege that Branson not only killed the birds, but also dismembered them to sell their feathers, wings, tails, and other parts for profit.
The U.S. government is urging U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen to hand down a substantial prison sentence and restitution totaling $777,250.
The amount includes $5,000 for each dead eagle and $1,750 for 107 hawks that were also allegedly killed by Branson and his co-conspirators.
However, Branson’s defense attorney, Andrew Nelson, said that the prosecution’s estimate of the number of birds killed is exaggerated.
The accusation that as many as 3,600 birds were slaughtered comes from a co-defendant, Simon Paul, who has been on the run in Canada since the indictment.
Nelson pointed to inconsistencies in Paul’s statements, saying that his estimates fluctuated from 3,600 to 1,000.
Nelson has also challenged the restitution amount for the hawks, claiming those killings were not part of last year’s grand jury indictment.
He is requesting probation for Branson on the basis that his client has no prior criminal record.
Investigators have gathered evidence against Branson through text messages, which refer to at least 118 eagles and 107 hawks killed.
But they also said that two years of his messages were not recovered, and that therefore the full extent of the trafficking ring’s impact remains unknown.
Bald and golden eagles are considered sacred in Native American culture, and U.S. law strictly prohibits killing or disturbing them without a permit.
While federally recognized tribes can obtain feathers and parts legally from the National Eagle Repository and other designated centers, the demand has resulted in a significant backlog, prompting illegal trade to thrive.
Branson pleaded guilty in March to conspiracy, wildlife trafficking and two counts of trafficking federally protected bald and golden eagles. He faced a maximum of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the most serious charge, conspiracy. Under a plea deal, prosecutors said they would seek to dismiss additional trafficking charges.
Federal guidelines call for a sentence of roughly three to four years in prison for Branson, they said.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press