Hot Springs Man Sentenced for a Violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act

United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that a Hot Springs, South Dakota, man convicted of a violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act was sentenced on July 10, 2020, by U.S. Magistrate Judge Daneta L. Wollmann.

Larry Belitz, age 77, was sentenced to 1 year of probation, and was ordered to pay $19,900 in restitution to the U.S. Forest Service, a fine of $10,000, and a $25 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

The conviction stems from Belitz, who without being permitted to do so, knowingly possessed and sold parts of bald and golden eagles on Native American items he sold between February 2013 and February 2015.  

The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Kelderman prosecuted the case.