Environmental Crimes Bulletin – July 2025

• No. 3:25-mj-03726 (Southern District of California)
• AUSA Jacqueline Jimenez

On July 7, 2025, prosecutors filed a complaint charging Carlos Abundez with smuggling 14 live keel-billed toucans concealed inside the dashboard of his Volkswagen Passat (18 U.S.C. § 545).

On June 25, 2025, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents detained Abundez at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry after a canine reacted while screening the car. Upon further inspection, a CBP officer found a bound bird, wrapped in cloth and duct taped under the car’s dashboard.

At the time, the officer did not know what the object was until it began to move and flutter. Officers then pried open the side panel of the dashboard and discovered 14 sedated juvenile keel-billed toucans concealed within the compartment.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents and inspectors responded to the scene. A wildlife inspector identified the 14 birds as juvenile keel-billed toucans. Some sustained injuries including broken tails and a broken leg.

Border Veterinary Services initially treated the birds and then transferred them to a Department of Agriculture Animal Import Center for quarantine.

Keel-billed toucans are native to the region stretching from southern Mexico through Ecuador, including Venezuela, Colombia, and Nicaragua. Because of their threatened status, they are listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Toucans are sold as pets for up to $5,000 per bird.

This arrest follows the recent prosecution of three other individuals caught smuggling Amazon parrots and parakeets through the Otay Mesa and San Ysidro ports of entry, highlighting a pattern of illegal wildlife trade through Southern California. Smuggled birds that are not subject to quarantine can be dangerous as they may carry and spread Avian influenza (bird flu) and other diseases.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation.

Photo of Keel-billed Toucan found in defendant’s vehicle; included with filed complaint.

• No. 1:25-CR-00039 (Eastern District of Texas)
• ECS Senior Trial Attorney Ken Nelson
• ECS Trial Attorney Lauren Steele
• AUSA Joe Batte
• AUSA Edward Warner
• ECS Paralegal John Jones

On July 7, 2025, prosecutors filed an Information charging V. Ships Norway, A.S, for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. § 1908(a)).

V. Ships Norway operated the M/T Swift Winchester. On several occasions, crew members transferred oily waste from the vessel’s incinerator waste oil tank into the sewage tank. That oily waste was then discharged directly into the ocean without using mandatory pollution prevention equipment.

The vessel’s Chief Engineer also ordered the crew to clean the Oil Water Separator filters on the ship’s deck. The crew hosed off the filters, allowing the oil and debris to run over the side of the ship into the ocean. The vessel then entered the ports of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Port Arthur, Texas, with a knowingly falsified Oil Record Book that did not record these discharges.

The U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service and Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Port Arthur conducted the investigation.

• No. 3:25-CR-00295 (District of Oregon)
• AUSA Andrew Ho
• RCEC Gwendolyn Russell

On July 15, 2025, a grand jury returned an Indictment charging Kayla Hartley with Conspiracy and violating the Clean Water Act (18 U.S.C. § 371; 33 U.S.C. §§ 1317(d), 1319(c)(2)(A)). Trial is scheduled to begin on September 30, 2025.

During the period relevant to the Indictment, Bay Area Concrete LLC was a California-based company that operated construction slurry dewatering facilities in California, Oregon, and Washington. Northwest Slurry Solutions and Hydro Excavation, LLC (Northwest Slurry) was an Oregon-based company that operated Bay Area Concrete’s facility in Hillsboro, Oregon, where it received, processed, and disposed of hydro excavation slurry. Kayla Hartley was the Director of Operations at the Hillsboro facility. Clean Water Services (CWS) operated the sanitary sewer system in Hillsboro and implemented the industrial wastewater discharge permit program.

Between August 2019 and December 2020, Hartley and others are alleged to have conspired to operate the Hillsboro facility in violation of a pretreatment standard, by introducing pollutants to a sewer system at a discharge point not designated to receive these wastes.

During this period, Hartley submitted a permit application to CWS that falsely claimed the facility would only discharge “clean slurry” and “oily slurry” to the sanitary sewer. She also entered into agreements with industrial wastewater producers who paid for the Hillsboro facility to properly treat and dispose of their industrial wastes. One such business, Precision Castparts Corp., (PCC), arranged for Northwest Slurry to receive wastewater generated from etching titanium parts for airplane engines. Between February and September 2020, the Hillsboro facility received approximately 500,000 gallons of industrial wastewater from PCC and discharged industrial wastewater to the sanitary sewer without a permit.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation.

• No. 1:25-CR-00007 (District of Alaska)
• AUSA Seth Brickey
• AUSA Mac Caille Petursson

On July 17, 2025, a grand jury returned an Indictment charging the following commercial fishermen with conspiring to illegally harvest halibut, in violation of the Lacey Act: Jonathan Pavlik, Vincent Jacobson, Kyle Dierick, Michael Babic, and Timothy Ross (18 U.S.C. § 371; 16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a)(1), (d), 3373(d)(1)(B), (d)(3)(A)) .

Between 2019 and 2023, Pavlik conspired with Jacobson, Dierick, Babic, and Ross to illegally harvest and land halibut. The defendants employed multiple unlawful fishing practices throughout the conspiracy including each defendant landing halibut without always being aboard the vessel during the fishing trips, in violation of federal law and regulations. Pavlik, Jacobson, Dierick, Babic, and Ross intentionally falsely reported that the halibut caught was creditable to their respective Individual Fishing Quota permit balances. Pavlik and the four co-conspirators are responsible for more than 10,700 pounds of illegally harvested halibut.

Between August and October 2023, Pavlik sold and intentionally made false statements concerning more than 9,600 pounds of halibut that was caught on one boat and then illegally transferred to another before landing for sale.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation, with assistance from the Alaska Wildlife Troopers. 

• No. 2:25-CR-00064 (Southern District of Ohio)
• ECS Senior Trial Attorney Adam Cullman
• ECS Trial Attorney Mark Romley
• AUSA Nicole Pakiz
• Former ECS Paralegal Gabriella Leaming

On July 8, 2025, Garrett Fitzgerald pleaded guilty to Conspiracy for his involvement with online groups dedicated to creating and distributing videos depicting acts of extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys (18 U.S.C. § 371).

Garrett conspired with defendant Ronald P. Bedra and others to create and distribute so-called “animal crush videos,” which are videos depicting acts of sadistic violence against juvenile and adult monkeys. The conspirators used encrypted chat applications to direct money to individuals in Indonesia willing to commit the requested acts of torture on camera.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation.

• No. 5:25-CR-00515 (Southern District of Texas)
• AUSA Bryan Oliver

On July 8, 2025, Jocelyn Castilleja pleaded guilty to smuggling (18 U.S.C. § 545).

On June 15, 2024, Castilleja attempted to smuggle three 25-pound containers of 410A hydrofluorocarbon refrigerant from Mexico into the United States in her vehicle. Customs and Border Protection Agents discovered the refrigerants during a routine inspection at the Brownsville, Texas, border crossing. Castilleja failed to declare the containers to customs authorities.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation.

• No. 2:25-CR-00138 (Eastern District of Louisiana)
• ECS Senior Litigation Counsel Richard Udell
• AUSA Dall Kammer

On July 15, 2025, Eagle Ship Management, LLC (Eagle), pleaded guilty to violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (33 U.S.C. § 1908). This case stems from the deliberate discharge of approximately 10,000 gallons of oily bilge water overboard in U.S. waters off the coast of New Orleans from the M/V Gannet Bulker, a foreign-flag vessel registered in the Marshall Islands. Sentencing is scheduled for October 16, 2025.

A member of the ship’s crew reported the illegal discharge via social media to the U.S. Coast Guard. At the time of the discharge, the Gannet Bulker was at an anchorage near the mouth of the Mississippi River in New Orleans, within U.S. navigable waters. Eagle has agreed to pay a $1,750,000 fine and serve a four-year term of probation subject to the terms of an environmental compliance program.

Kirill Kompaniets, the vessel’s Chief Engineer, was previously sentenced to serve a year and a day in prison followed by six months of supervised release, and to pay a $5,000 criminal fine, for obstructing justice and directing the illegal discharge.

The U.S. Coast Guard conducted the investigation.

• No. 2:25-CR-00005 (Western District of Washington)
• ECS Senior Trial Attorney Ryan Connors
• ECS Trial Attorney Sarah Brown
• ECS Law Clerk Amanda Backer

On July 21, 2025, Branden Trager and Mayhem Services, LLC, pleaded guilty to a Lacey Act misdemeanor violation (16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a)(2)(A), 3373(d)(2)). Sentencing is scheduled for October 16, 2025.

Trager owns Mayhem Services and runs hunting and fishing guided trips in the Pacific Northwest. Trager organizes hunts specifically targeting the harlequin duck, a rare sea bird prized by hunters. Washington State closed harlequin duck hunting season from 2022 to 2024, so Trager took three hunting parties to British Columbia, Canada, where it was still legal to hunt them. However, Canadian law prohibits non-citizens from obtaining guiding licenses. Trager conspired with a Canadian taxidermist to illegally shoot the harlequin and then export the mounts back to the United States.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducted the investigation, with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and British Columbia Conservation Officer Services. 

Harlequin Duck; USFWS Photo taken for reference only. Included in press release.

• No. 8:25-CR-00335 (Middle District of Florida)
• ECS Senior Trial Attorney Matthew Morris
• AUSA Erin Favorit

On July 29, 2025, Jordan Carrillo pleaded guilty to conspiring to sponsor, exhibit, train, and transport dogs for use in animal fighting ventures (18 U.S.C. § 371).

Carillo and co-conspirators arranged and participated in dog fights. They possessed, trained, transported, delivered, and received pit bull-type dogs for the purpose of fighting them in Connecticut, Florida, and Massachusetts.

Following the execution of two search warrants, authorities seized dogs with scarring, along with a variety of items consistent with dog fighting, including: veterinary medicines, skin staplers, dog certificates, and treadmills.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service.

• No. 2:24-CR-00248 (Southern District of Texas)
• AUSA Tyler Joseph Foster
• AUSA Liesel LeCates Roscher

On July 30, 2025, Jennifer Mayo pleaded guilty to smuggling Dong Tao chickens into the United States (18 U.S.C. § 545).

Between August and September 2023, Mayo smuggled 70 Dong Tao chicken eggs into the United States from Vietnam and Cambodia. She attempted to hatch them at her home, but most of them died. Subsequent searches of Mayo’s property by law enforcement confirmed she possessed multiple live Dong Tao chickens on her property. Due to the risk of the chickens spreading disease, they had to be euthanized.

Dong Tao chickens, also known as Dragon chickens, are a rare and expensive breed of chicken endemic to Southeast Asia. Originally from the village of Dong Tao in Vietnam, these chickens are known for their very large legs.

It is illegal to import poultry into the United States from regions affected by highly pathogenic avian influenza or regions where Newcastle disease exists in commercial poultry populations, unless specific conditions are met.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture conducted the investigation with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Marshals Service.

• No. 4:24-CR-40040 (Southern District of Illinois)
• AUSA David Sanders

On June 17, 2025, a court sentenced Michael D. McKinney to two years of probation and ordered him to pay a $5,500 fine to the Lacey Act Reward Account and $5,000 in restitution to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act (16 U.S.C. §§3372(a) (1), 3373(d)(2)) for his involvement in illegally baiting hunting areas to attract migratory birds. McKinney is also prohibited from hunting or providing guiding services while under supervision. McKinney is a long-time employee of the Burns Hunting Club, LLC (BHC), whose sole owner is Hugh Thomas “Tom” Burns, Jr.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service initiated an investigation into the BHC following a request for assistance from Federal Wildlife Officers (FWO) stationed at the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge, adjacent to the BHC. Over the years, FWOs received multiple complaints that the BHC was baiting its fields in violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

Between January 6 and January 14, 2021, Burns and McKinney conspired to scatter corn in specific hunting fields on BHC property to attract migratory game birds for hunters. Burns, operating the exclusive hunting club, provided guiding services to club members over these illegally baited fields. To hunt at BHC, members were required to purchase annual individual or corporate memberships, as well as pay daily fees for guiding services.

Officers conducting surveillance of BHC observed club members hunting and killing migratory birds directly over the previously baited areas, confirming the unlawful attraction and harvesting of wildlife facilitated by the baiting practices.

Tom Burns and BHC were sentenced on May 19, 2025, to complete two-year terms of probation. They were also ordered pay a total of $11,000 in fines to the Lacey Act Reward Account and $50,000 in restitution to the IDNR. Additionally, the government seized equipment used in the conspiracy, including a pickup truck and a utility task vehicle. Burns is prohibited from hunting or providing guiding services while on probation, and the hunting club was ordered to cease operations for two years. Burns and BHC pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act (16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a) (1), 3373(d)(2)).

Per the terms of probation, BHC was required to post the sign pictured below in front of the property.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement and officers from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources conducted the investigation.

Photo taken by Probation Officer after the sign was installed on a public right-of-way in front of the property.

• Nos. 2:23-CR-00486, 00491 (Eastern District of New York)
• ECS Senior Trial Attorney RJ Powers
• ECS Trial Attorney Rachel Roberts
• ECS Law Clerk Amanda Backer

On July 1, 2025, a court sentenced Richard Zagger, a Northridge Construction Corporation (Northridge) supervisor, to one year in prison and two years of supervised released after pleading guilty to Conspiracy and obstruction of official proceedings (18 U.S.C. §§ 371, 1505).

Northridge pleaded guilty to violating the Occupational Safety and Health Act for causing the death of a company employee (29 U.S.C. § 666(e)). The company was sentenced in August 2024 to pay a $100,000 fine and complete a five-year term of probation.

A Northridge employee died after falling from an improperly secured roof while he helped construct a shed located on the Northridge property. Zagger oversaw the project.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations require companies and employers to maintain the stability of a metal structure during construction. Northridge pleaded guilty to violating this worker safety standard and to making two false statements that obstructed OSHA’s investigation into the employee’s death.

OSHA conducted the investigation.

• No. 4:22-CR-00580 (District of South Carolina)
• ECS Senior Trial Attorney Patrick Duggan
• AUSA Derek A. Shoemake
• AUSA Amy Bower
• ECS Paralegal Jillian Grubb

On July 8, 2025, a court sentenced Bhagavan “Doc” Antle to 12 months’ incarceration, after he pleaded guilty to a Conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and launder more than $500,000 for what he believed to be an operation to smuggle illegal immigrants into the United States across the Mexico border. Antle was also ordered to pay a $55,000 fine, serve three years of supervised release, forfeit more than $197,000, and forfeit three chimpanzees.

The wildlife conspiracy included various schemes Antle used to hide his illegal trafficking in endangered species, including requiring payments to be labelled as “donations” and funneled through his non-profit, The Rare Species Fund; conducting transactions in cash to hide their true nature; and creating false paperwork to hide the illegality of his wildlife transactions. The animals trafficked included baby chimpanzees, cheetahs, lions, and tigers, all of which are protected under both the Endangered Species Act and international law. The Lacey Act prohibits trafficking of illegally taken wildlife, fish, or plants, including animals protected under the Endangered Species Act.

Antle’s co-defendant in the wildlife conspiracy, Jason Clay, was sentenced to serve four months in prison, followed by four months of home confinement, and to pay a $4,000 fine to the Lacey Act Reward Fund. Clay illegally sold a juvenile chimpanzee to Antle in exchange for $200,000 in cash and a juvenile gibbon.

For the money laundering conspiracy, Antle and co-defendant Andrew Sawyer laundered more than $500,000 in cash generated from an operation to smuggle illegal immigrants across the Mexico border into the United States. Antle planned to conceal this cash by writing checks for what appeared to be construction-related services for Myrtle Beach Safari, which he owned and operated. Myrtle Beach Safari is a 50-acre for-profit zoo that offers tours and private encounters with exotic wildlife.

Sawyer was sentenced to complete a two-year term of probation, to include eight months of home detention. He also forfeited a chimpanzee and approximately $185,000.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation.

• No. 4:23-CR-40034 (Southern District of Illinois)
• AUSA David Sanders

On July 9, 2025, a court sentenced the fifth and final Mississippi resident charged in this case involving illegal out-of-state white-tailed deer hunting, in violation of the Lacey Act (16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a)(2)(A), 3373(d)(2)).

Gerald B. Moran pleaded guilty to unlawfully transporting wildlife and was sentenced to complete a five- year term of probation (with the first six months in home confinement). Moran will pay a $2,500 fine and $5,000 in restitution.

The court previously sentenced four other defendants to serve various terms of probation ranging from three to five years and to pay fines ranging from $2,500 to $10,000. The court also previously ordered those defendants to pay a total of $94,500 in restitution.

Between 2018 and 2022, the poachers used spotlights to scout white-tailed deer in Massac, Jefferson, Union, Pope, and Clark counties in southern Illinois. Once they located deer, members of the group killed the deer, returning later to collect the carcasses. The poachers then transported the carcasses from Illinois back to Mississippi and processed them.

All defendants are banned from hunting while under supervision and all restitution is payable to the Illinois Conservation Police Operations Assistance Fund.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement (USFWS) and the Illinois Conservation Police conducted the investigation, with support from USFWS Federal Wildlife Officers; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks.

Illegally harvested white-tailed deer taxidermy mounts from one of the defendant’s collections. Photo from USFWS Press Release 

• No. 1:24-CR-10056 (District of Massachusetts)
• AUSA Benjamin Tolkoff

On July 17, 2025, a court sentenced Robert J. Bullock, Sr., to time served (one day) followed by three years of supervised release. Bullock pleaded guilty to violating the Safe Drinking Water Act for tampering with public water systems (42 U.S.C. § 300i-1(a)).

On the evening of November 29, 2022, Bullock, a former Stoughton Water Department employee, entered one of the Water Department’s pumping stations and turned off the pump that introduces chlorine into drinking water. As a result, inadequately disinfected water was pumped into the drinking water system.

The Federal Bureau of Investigations, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division, and the Stoughton Massachusetts Police Department conducted the investigation.

• No. 4:23-CR-00692 (Eastern District of Missouri)
• AUSA Jillian Anderson

On July 18, 2025, a court sentenced Terrell Williams to 18 months’ incarceration, followed by three years of supervised release. Williams will also perform 40 hours of community service.

Williams pleaded guilty to violating the animal fighting venture prohibition of the Animal Welfare Act for hosting dog fights in his home and training dogs to fight (7 U.S.C. §§ 2156(a)-(c); 18 U.S.C. § 49(a)).

Between September 2020 through May 2022, Williams hosted fights in a wooden “box” setup in the basement of his home in Riverview, Missouri. He also owned and bred bull terriers and terrier mixes that were used for fights. On June 22, 2022, federal agents executed a search warrant at Williams’s home and seized eight bull terrier mixes and three Yorkshire terriers. The dogs bore scars consistent with fighting. Agents also removed equipment used to train and condition dogs, including weighted vests and a canine treadmill.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation.

• No. 5:25-CR-00254 (Southern District of Texas)
• AUSA Torie Sailor

On July 21, 2025, a court sentenced Priscilla Sanchez to time served, plus three years’ supervised release, and a money forfeiture of $44,450. Sanchezpleaded guilty to violating the Lacey Act for attempting to import five spider monkeys, a protected species, into the United States from Mexico (16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a)(2), 3373(d)(1)(A)).

On January 13, 2025, Sanchez attempted to enter the U.S. at the Port of Entry near Laredo, Texas, driving an SUV. Customs and Border Protection officers referred her to secondary screening. Officers discovered a duffle bag with five monkeys wearing diapers concealed inside it. Authorities confirmed they were spider monkeys, which are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Sanchez admitted to keeping monkeys at her house and selling them for between $300 and $500 each, which she knew was illegal. Sanchez previously forfeited the monkeys and a Chevrolet Tahoe.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, and Customs and Border Protection conducted the investigation.

• No. 2:24-CR-00653 (District of South Carolina)
• AUSA Winston Holliday
• AUSA Amy Bower

On July 22, 2025, a court sentenced Don M. Rynn to 12 months and one day of incarceration, followed by three years of supervised release, and to pay a $7,500 fine. In March 2025, a jury convicted Rynn of making false statements to federal agents and falsifying fishing records (18 U.S.C. §§ 1001, 1519).

Rynn managed several commercial fishing vessels in the McClellanville, South Carolina, area, including the Maximum Retriever and the Crystal C. The vessels docked at Carolina Seafood, a federally licensed dealer.

On March 21, 2023, the Maximum Retriever embarked on a commercial fishing trip captained by the defendant’s son, who Rynn instructed to catch as many fish as he could (ignoring federally imposed quotas). Rynn told his son he would “take care of things” when he returned.

The Maximum Retriever returned to McClellanville shortly after midnight on March 27, 2023, with almost three times the legal limit of snowy grouper on board, and one and a half times the allowable number of grey tilefish. Rynn was waiting for the boat to arrive. Once the Maximum Retriever was in place, the Crystal C was maneuvered so that the two boats were side-by-side.

Rynn then directed deckhands to move fish from the ice hold of the Maximum Retriever to the Crystal C. They removed additional fish from the Maximum Retriever to load onto Rynn’s truck to take to another seafood dealer in Georgetown.

In the mandatory trip report filed shortly thereafter, Rynn reported his catch only up to the limit, hiding the fact that the Maximum Retriever had vastly overfished. He attributed a substantial portion of the catch to the Crystal C, which had remained moored at the dock.

On March 27, 2023, law enforcement officers received an anonymous tip alerting them to the excessive catch. The Georgetown seafood dealer who had received some of the overage initially lied to cover for Rynn. When he realized the agents were closing in, the dealer threw the fish in the river to get rid of them.

In October 2023, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) agents interviewed Rynn about the incidents in March. Rynn lied, saying the snowy grouper and tilefish had been contaminated by a fuel spill while at sea, and that he had disposed of them in a dumpster. Rynn further implied that a U.S. Coast Guard report addressing an unlawful discharge into Jeremy Creek was inaccurate and should have been attributed to the Crystal C, which would have bolstered his fuel spill story. 

In total, the Maximum Retriever caught approximately 560 pounds of snowy grouper and 450 pounds of tilefish. The legal limit for grouper is 200 pounds and the limit for tilefish is 300 pounds.

NOAA, the U.S. Coast Guard, the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Saltwater Team conducted the investigation.

• No. 6:25-mj-06035 (District of Kansas)
• AUSA Matt Treaster

On July 22, 2025, a court sentenced Matt Jennings to pay a $10,000 fine and complete a five-year term of probation. Jennings, a Georgia resident, is banned for life from hunting and fishing in Kansas. Jennings pleaded guilty to violating the Lacey Act for illegally hunting deer (16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a)(2)(A), 3373(d)(2), (d)(3)).

On November 11, 2022, Jennings killed an antlered deer near Florence, Kansas. His antlered deer tag did not allow him to take a deer in this part of the state. The next day, he drove to Oklahoma to fraudulently register the kill in Oklahoma using an Oklahoma electronic tag.

On November 19, 2022, Jennings killed another antlered deer near Wakeeney, Kansas. Although he had a valid tag for that area, killing a second antlered deer in the same year exceeded the bag limit for the season, in violation of state law.

Jennings, the host of a hunting show titled “The Game,” featured both illegal hunts in his show.

As part of the sentence, he will pay $15,000 in restitution to the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks and forfeit the antlers from the white tail deer he illegally hunted.

While under supervision, Jennings is prohibited from guiding, hunting, trapping, fishing, or being with anyone engaged in those activities in Nebraska, Missouri, Oklahoma, Colorado, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement and the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks conducted the investigation, with assistance from the U.S. Secret Service, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Missouri Department of Conservation, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and the Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division.

• No. 1:23-CR-00018 (Middle District of Georgia)
• AUSA Leah McEwen

On July 29, 2025, a court sentenced James Bowman Wiley, Jr., to pay a $9,500 fine and complete a three-year term of probation. Wiley pleaded guilty to making false statements relating to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) (18 U.S.C. § 1001(a)). The terms of probation require Wiley to either shut down his business or comply with all laws and regulations within 90 days. If Wiley fails to comply throughout the term of probation, he will face a term of incarceration.

CJT Group owned and operated five Community Water Systems located in Sumter County, Georgia. Wiley is the sole member and registered agent for this company. He has a history of noncompliance with local and federal regulations governing water system operations.

Between 2010 and 2022, Wiley submitted falsified reports to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GAEPD) regarding chlorine testing and water meter readings at several of his company’s water systems. Specifically, he misrepresented chlorine levels in water samples and provided fabricated water meter readings, actions that violated the SDWA and endangered public health and safety.

Between January 2018 and February 2021, the GAEPD issued 17 Notices of Violation to Wiley for a range of violations. His false reports obstructed regulatory efforts to ensure the safety of the community’s drinking water despite years of warnings and enforcement actions by the GAEPD.

The EPA Criminal Investigation Division and the GAEPD conducted the investigation.

• No. 7:23-CR-00015 (Western District of Virginia)
• AUSA Michael Baudinet
• AUSA Jonathan Jones

On July 30, 2025, a court sentenced James H. Spencer to pay a $7,500 fine and complete a two-year term of probation. Spencer, the Mayor of Glen Lyn, Virginia, previously pleaded guilty to a felony violation of the Clean Water Act (CWA) (33 U.S.C. § 1319(c)(2)(A)). Spencer directed employees of the Town of Glen Lyn to illegally discharge raw sewage and other pollutants into the East River, a tributary of the New River.

The discharges occurred at a pump station located behind the Glen Lyn Post Office, which was not a permitted or authorized discharge point for the Glen Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant. The East River, a perennial stream and a tributary of the New River, is a protected waterway under the CWA.

Spencer knowingly violated multiple conditions of the Town’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, including discharging from unauthorized locations and failing to report the discharges to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division and the Virginia State Police conducted the investigation.