In a surprising turn of events, a casual conversation aboard a flight led to the unraveling of an illegal wildlife trafficking operation in California. The incident began when two California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) officers, returning to northern California from San Diego, engaged in a chat with a couple. This exchange revealed the couple's involvement in illegal hunting activities, ultimately resulting in significant wildlife law violations.
During the flight, the couple openly discussed their hunting exploits and showed the officers a sea turtle skull in their carry-on bag. They further admitted to illegally hunting a mountain lion and divulged details about a relative's "trophy room" filled with taxidermized animals. This conversation prompted the officers to secure search warrants for the couple's residence in Chico and their relative's home in Napa County.
Upon executing the search warrants, authorities discovered a shocking array of illegal wildlife possessions. At the Chico home, wildlife officers found mountain lion claws, a ringtail cat, a mounted barn owl, and several deer taken without the necessary tags. Ringtail cats are fully protected under California law, and it is illegal to possess a mounted raptor or raptor parts without appropriate state and federal permits. The Napa County property revealed even more disturbing items: two full-bodied taxidermized mountain lions and a wolverine.
Harry Vern Fitzpatrick, 64, pleaded guilty to possessing protected species and was sentenced to six months of probation. Additionally, Byron Lee Fitzpatrick, 24, and Shannon Lee Price, 28, were convicted of violating state wildlife laws. The court placed them on a one-year probation, prohibiting them from hunting or associating with hunters, and fined them $1,865 and $1,015, respectively.
The United States serves as a crucial hub for illegal wildlife trafficking, acting as a "source, destination and transit location" for such activities. Globally, wildlife trafficking ranks as the third-largest illegal trafficking activity. Nathaniel Arnold, CDFW’s chief of law enforcement, highlighted the broader impact of these crimes.
“Like human and narcotics trafficking, wildlife trafficking of both live animals and animal parts is known to fund transnational criminal organizations and their violent activities all over the world.” – Nathaniel Arnold, CDFW’s chief of law enforcement