BENTON, IL — Five men from Mississippi were sentenced in federal court for using spotlights to illegally hunt white-tailed deer across multiple counties in southern Illinois, then transporting the animals across state lines in violation of federal wildlife laws, prosecutors announced.
Between 2018 and 2022, the men used high-powered spotlights at night to locate and kill deer in Massac, Jefferson, Union, Pope, and Clark counties. They later returned to retrieve the carcasses and transport them to Mississippi, where they harvested the animals and often mounted their heads or antlers.
Lee J. Johnson, 54, of Saucier, pleaded guilty to unlawful transport of wildlife in violation of the Lacey Act. He was sentenced to five years’ probation and ordered to pay $75,000 in restitution and a $10,000 fine.
Steven J. Pique, 56, of Biloxi, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and received five years’ probation and $2,000 in restitution.
Gerald B. Moran, 40, of Saucier, was sentenced to five years’ probation and ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution and a $2,500 fine after pleading guilty to unlawful transport of wildlife.
Joshua A. Marshall, 30, also of Saucier, received three years’ probation, $7,500 in restitution, and a $2,500 fine for his role in the illegal activity.
John M. Pritchard, 57, of Biloxi, was sentenced to five years’ probation and ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution and a $5,000 fine after pleading guilty to unlawful transport of wildlife.
Authorities said the group’s actions violated the Lacey Act, a federal law that prohibits trafficking in illegally taken wildlife.
“This was not an isolated incident of unlawful hunting; rather, it was a calculated, multi-year operation that exploited Illinois’s prized wildlife resources for personal gain,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Assistant Director Douglas Ault.
Fines collected from the defendants will be deposited into the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Lacey Act Reward Account. Restitution payments will go to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
“This case sends a clear message: wildlife laws are not only about species protection, but they also uphold the principles of fair chase and ethical hunting,” said Jed Whitchurch, director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ Office of Law Enforcement.
The coordinated investigation involved federal and state agencies, highlighting what officials described as a deliberate effort to dismantle a network of illegal hunting that spanned years and state borders.
