Federal authorities have not yet brought criminal charges against two Honduran nationals who allegedly shot and killed a bald eagle in Nebraska to eat it for dinner.
On February 28, Stanton County sheriffs arrested two Honduran nationals found carrying a dead bald eagle after responding to a report of a suspicious vehicle outside of the Wood Duck State Wildlife Management.
According to a press release issued by the Stanton County Sherrif’s Office:
On Tuesday afternoon at about 4:00 p.m. the Stanton County Sheriff’s office responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle just northwest of the main Wood Duck Recreation Area that is located about three miles southwest of Stanton. The vehicle was located in a field and while having contact with the two males it was determined that they had a dead North American Bald Eagle in their possession. Further investigation revealed that the two had shot and killed the protected national bird in that area and stated they planned on cooking and eating the bird. Nebraska Game and Parks was contacted and took custody of the eagle and the rifle used to kill the eagle.
The two individuals, 20-year-old Ramiro Hernandez-Tziquin and 20-year-old Domingo Zetino-Hernandez, spoke no English and only carried documents from the Honduran consulate as a form of identification, according to Stanton County Sheriff Mike Unger.
Killing a bald eagle, the country’s national bird, violates the 1940 Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, a federal law with a maximum punishment of one year in prison.
