A man from Humble, Texas, U.S., pled guilty to purchasing tails and sets of feathers from illegally killed bald and golden eagles, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana.
John Patrick Butler, 71, was sentenced May 5 to five years of probation and ordered to pay $77,500 in restitution.
The bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) were killed on and around Montana’s Flathead Indian Reservation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said
Another man, Travis John Branson, was convicted of killing the eagles and sending their body parts to Butler. In October 2024, Branson was sentenced to nearly four years in prison followed by three years of probation, and ordered to pay $777,250 in restitution, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana.
A co-defendant accused of killing the birds, Simon Paul, is still at large, according to the release
