Last week, a master hunting guide was ordered by a Nome District Court judge to give up his guide license and pay restitution for aiding in illegal hunting practices in 2016.
According to Alaska Wildlife Troopers, Brian Simpson of Fairbanks was sentenced to pay $35,000 in fines and $2,600 in restitution after a plea deal with the Office of Special Prosecutions on Thursday. In addition, Simpson could pay $30,000 more in fines and serve 60 days in jail if he violates probation conditions within the next year. The statement from Wildlife Troopers did not clarify to whom the restitution would be paid.
Simpson was originally charged with two counts of aiding in the commission of a violation when he used two of his employees on snowmobiles to herd grizzly bears in Unit 22 towards clients, and then three counts of hunting on private land within the Bering Land Bridge National Preserve without prior authorization.
The two guides working with Simpson, Tyler Weyiouanna and Matthew Iyatunguk, pleaded guilty to using a motorized vehicle to harass game in the spring of 2018.
Image at top: Brown bear. Photo via Flickr Creative Commons courtesy of Eric Gorski.
