Plantation workers plead guilty to killing protected birds of prey

3 offenders get suspended sentences, fines; plantation pays restitution

Three workers at a Jasper County hunting plantation pleaded guilty in federal court in Charleston on Aug. 29 to killing federally protected hawks and owls, capping one of the biggest wildlife investigations in South Carolina history and resulting in one of the largest wildlife fines ever imposed in the state.

William Martin, 59, of Yemassee, the general manager of Mackay Point Plantation, and plantation employes Keith Gebhardt, 54, of Yemassee, and Mark Argetsinger, 63, of Beaufort, pleaded guilty to trapping and killing more than 30 red-tailed hawks, Cooper’s hawks and great horned owls during quail season the past two years.

U.S. Magistrate Bristow Marchant sentenced the three to six months’ probation, community service, a one-year ban on trapping and fines of $500 to $1,000 each, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office. In addition, Mackay Point Plantation LLC agreed to pay $250,000 in community restitution. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in South Carolina and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will divide these funds among local animal charities such as the Center for the Birds of Prey and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).

The U.S. Attorney’s office said there is no evidence that the owners of Mackay Point were involved in the killing of the hawks and owls.

Mackay Point is an 8,000-acre private hunting plantation used only by the owners and their family and friends. The plantation is divided into different hunting areas for deer, quail, doves and ducks. Employes released about 6,000 quail a year for the the owners to hunt.

Red-tailed hawks and great horned owls are native to South Carolina and are natural predators of quail and other small birds and animals. They are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and can’t be killed without a special permit.

The plantation employees were charged with catching the birds of prey in steel traps and killing them. The S.C. Department of Natural Resources learned of the activity through a confidential tip. When officers investigated they discovered a dead hawk on the plantation.

Working with US Fish and Wildlife agents, the officers set up cameras and recorded the illegal trapping over a two-year period. When the officers served a federal search warrant on the plantation in February they discovered more traps and dead birds.

The U.S. Attorney’s office said the killing of birds of prey to improve quail hunting has become a widespread problem in the Southeast.

“It is something that has been going on for years in different places,” said Capt. Robert McCullough of the SCDNR. “We take this very seriously, along with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. If we find it, we are going to prosecute, and if you are doing it, look over your shoulder because we are probably going to be watching you.”