Man to plead guilty to helping kill 3,600 eagles, other birds and selling feathers prized by tribes
A young golden eagle is released above Rogers Pass by a wildlife biologist on Oct. 6, 2005, near Lincoln, Mont. A Washington state man accused of helping kill more than 3,000 birds including eagles on a Montana Indian reservation then illegally selling their parts intends to plead guilty to federal criminal charges. (Michael Gallacher/The Missoulian via AP, File)
A Washington state man accused of helping kill more than 3,000 birds — including eagles on a Montana Indian reservation — then illegally selling their feathers intends to plead guilty to illegal wildlife trafficking and other criminal charges, court documents show.
Prosecutors have alleged Travis John Branson and others killed about 3,600 birds during a yearslong "killing spree" on the Flathead Indian Reservation and elsewhere. Feathers from eagles and other birds are highly prized among many Native American tribes for use in sacred ceremonies and during pow-wows.
Branson of Cusick, Washington, will plead guilty under an agreement with prosecutors to reduced charges including conspiracy, wildlife trafficking and two counts of unlawful trafficking of eagles.
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