MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) — A Washington state man accused of leading a wildlife trafficking ring on a Native American reservation that killed thousands of eagles and hawks to sell on the black market was sentenced Thursday to nearly four years in prison. The trafficking ring operated for years on the Flathead Indian Reservation in northwest […]

A Washington state man who authorities said killed at least 118 eagles as part of a wildlife trafficking ring that operated on a Native American reservation in Montana was sentenced Thursday to three years and 10 months in prison, and must pay more than $777,000 in restitution.

Travis John Branson was part of a conspiracy that killed 3,600 birds, prosecutors said. He also trafficked and sold bird parts on the black market.