PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A Western Pennsylvania farmer and his employee were found guilty in federal court last week of unlawfully poisoning migratory birds.
Robert Yost, 52, of New Galilee, and Jacob Reese, 27, of Enon Valley, were convicted of conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States, unlawful use of a registered restricted use pesticide and unlawful killing of migratory birds. Sentencing is set for May.
Investigators say the two killed poisoned 17 Canada geese, 10 red-winged blackbirds and one mallard duck with poisoned corn kernels.
Investigators say that in June 2020, Yost and Reese spread corn laced with carbofuran on a leased soybean field, where children had access, to kill migratory birds. The birds ate the corn and were found dead nearby.
When questioned by game officials and other authorities, Yost and Reese lied about spreading the poison-laced corn and destroyed the feed bag containing the carbofuran-laced whole corn kernel, according to prosecutors.
Carbofuran is a registered restricted-use pesticide. Since at least 2009, the U.S. EPA had concluded that the dietary, worker and ecological risks for all uses of carbofuran were unacceptable and that all carbofuran products “generally caused unreasonable adverse effects on humans and the environment,” according to prosecutors.
“The defendants’ indiscriminate criminal conduct also put the safety and health of the farm’s neighbors—including small children and a man suffering from Alzheimer’s disease—at risk. Protecting wildlife and the people who live in our communities from the illicit use of dangerous chemicals is, and will remain, a priority of this office and our dedicated partners in state and local law enforcement,” said U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan.
Yost operates Yost Farms in Beaver County.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, EPA and the Pennsylvania Game Commission conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Yost and Reese, with assistance from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
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Western Pa. farmers guilty of unlawful killing of birds - WKBN.com
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