RAPID CITY, S.D. — A man in Montana was sentenced to three years in prison for selling golden eagle feathers and other parts in South Dakota, officials said.
In a news release, U.S. Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Viken on Monday sentenced Harvey Hugs, 59, to three years in federal prison, a year of supervised release and a special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund of $300. Hugs has also been ordered to pay $70,000 in restitution for the 14 young eagles he killed.
Hugs was convicted of three counts of violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, according to the news release. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in May 2022 and found guilty during a trial on Feb. 14, 2023.
In 2020, officials got information that Hugs was trafficking golden eagle feathers, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said, according to The Associated Press. A search of his house in March 2021 uncovered more eagle tails and wings.
Hugs sold golden eagle tails for hundreds of dollars each, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said, according to the AP. He sold a golden eagle wing and tail set for $1,000 and shipped the feathers to South Dakota, officials said.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Forensics Lab in Ashland, Oregon, found that the items removed from Hugs’ house were genetically matched to items he sold and shipped to South Dakota, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a news release. A total of 14 juvenile eagles were genetically identified among the items.
U.S. Marshals arrested Hugs in Billings, Montana, in June 2022, the Rapid City Journal reported.
The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act was enacted in 1940, according to the newspaper. It prohibits the possession, use and sale of eagles, their feathers and their parts.
In the United States, it is illegal to possess, use or sell eagles or their parts, according to the AP. There are some exceptions for cultural institutions as well as religious ceremonies for Native Americans.