Montana rancher gets 6 months in prison for creating hybrid sheep for captive hunting
Julia Gomez and Jonathan Limehouse, USA TODAYTue, October 1, 2024 at 11:39 AM CDT
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A Montana rancher has been sentenced to six months in prison after cloning a "near threatened" sheep from Asia and then selling its offspring to shooting preserves, according to court documents.
Arthur “Jack” Schubarth, 81, will spend six months in federal prison, with a three-year supervised release, and pay a $20,000 fine and a $4,000 community service payment for cloning the Marco Polo sheep from Kyrgyzstan.
Schubarth was sentenced Monday for committing two felonies, conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and substantively violating the Lacey Act, according to the Justice Department. The Lacey Act is a law that bans the trafficking of illegally taken wildlife, fish and plants.