Two federal employees charged with protecting wildlife pled guilty to poaching wildlife on private property.
The two Western Slope men don’t work for just any federal agency, but the Fish and Wildlife Service that looks after endangered species, runs preserves to protect animals, and apparently, likes to trespass on private land and kill them.
The hypocrisy of their actions and the “do as I say, not as I do” mentality reminds us of another federal agency’s behavior in Colorado, the EPA. When the EPA is not fining businesses of all sizes for minor or major regulatory infractions, they’re unleashing a torrent of mine waste down the Alamosa River.
Caught red-handed, literally, the federal wildlife protectors pled guilty to poaching a high-quality elk, according to KDVR.
“Poachers come from all walks of life but everyone is subject to the same rules and regulations. Colorado Parks and Wildlife will prosecute anyone to the full extent in cases like this one,” area wildlife manager JT Romatzke said in a news release.
After the EPA caused the mine spill, they pledged to take responsibility for their actions, then tried to blame Colorado and totally bailed on their responsibility to pay for the mess to local communities.
In the case of the poaching federal wildlife officers who work at Horsethief Canyon Native Fish Facility Ponds near Fruita, Thad Bingham of Fruita faced $12,000 in fines and several charges. He paid a whopping $200 fine to Colorado, and donated $5,000 to a Montana group that conserves property for elk.
Brian Scheer, also from the Western Slope, was forced to pay an $86 fine, and both men lost their hunting privileges for five years.
There’s no word on whether the federal employees have been suspended, fired, or given a raise and promotion by their federal employer.
The Fish and Wildlife Service, like the EPA, will likely sweep this embarrassing situation under the rug and hope no one notices that federal employees have once again shown they think they are above the laws they enforce on the rest of us.