Chad and Andrea | Facebook
Chad Kulow and Andrea Major, an engaged couple from Kuna, walked out of federal court last week with a whole lot more than they went in with. Together, the pair were saddled with five years worth of probation, some heavy-duty fines and multi-year hunting bans, but were spared prison time. A third guide by the name of Lavoy Eborn, who was also involved in their guided web of deceit, still faces sentencing later this year.
The sentencing is the result of an investigation that has been in the works since late 2021. It was then that Kulow, Major and Eborn were all licensed guides working under a legitimate outfitter who had the proper state licensing and U.S. Forest Service permitting for the Caribou-Targhee National Forest. While on the surface, it looked as though everything was buttoned up nicely for the couple and their sidekick, as under Idaho law, guides must operate beneath a licensed outfitter. The only caveat, of course, is that they are not able to book their own clients, take payments or run hunts independently.
And that is where our trio ran astray.
According to the federal indictment and court records, it didn’t take long before the three accused started operating as their own unlicensed outfitters. Kulow and Major advertised and booked their own hunts under the name Lethal Guides and Outfitters while Eborn flew under the E-N Hunting Services banner. After setting up shop, they started guiding mountain lion hunts in both the Caribou-Targhee National Forest and the Bridger-Teton National Forest in western Wyoming. Upwards of 14 clients reportedly paid them as much as $6,500 per hunter for hunts that took place between December 2021 and February of 2022.
LaVoy Linton Eborn | Facebook
Those hunts produced at least a dozen mountain lion kills, including one in Wyoming that ended up making the pages of the Boone and Crockett record books.
Unfortunately, their crimes didn’t end with the unauthorized guiding. In an effort to pull the wool over the eyes of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, they tried to cover their tracks on paper by submitting multiple big-game mortality reports listing the licensed outfitter’s name and business information, even though that business did not book, approve or participate in the hunts. Additionally, at least one client contract was issued under the licensed outfitter’s name without his knowledge, several of the cats were never presented for mandatory checks and carcasses were moved out of state without proper documentation.
Court records show that dead cats illegally traveled to Texas, Wyoming, Montana, North Carolina and in one instance, to a vacation rental property in Utah, where Kulow then brought it back into Idaho for inspection by Game and Fish.
Eventually the licensed outfitter got wind of what was happening without his consent and when he confronted Kulow, he was offered a $12,500 bribe.
Now with their fledgling businesses under scrutiny, it didn’t take long before the feds started sniffing around, and in August 2024, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho dropped the hammer.
Prosecutors charged the trio under the Lacey Act, the primary federal law that makes it a crime to transport, sell, or possess wildlife taken in violation of state law. The underlying state violations, that included guiding without a proper outfitter license, falsifying harvest reports, and moving animals without required checks, turned the whole operation into interstate wildlife trafficking.
Kulow was slapped with 11 felony Lacey Act counts in addition to conspiracy, his soon-to-be bride was hit with six Lacey counts and conspiracy and Eborn faced seven plus the conspiracy charge. In the end, the engaged couple took plea agreements that left Kulow pleading guilty to one felony Lacey Act count and Major pleading guilty to a misdemeanor Lacey Act count, while all other charges were dropped.
Calling it a “camouflage collar crime”, U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill noted that while prison is often used as a deterrent in white-collar cases, the real punishment for people who live and work in the great outdoors is the loss of hunting privileges.
“What sets this apart is not only the color of the collar involved, but the fact that hunting and the loss of hunting privileges is a monumental loss to many, many people in Idaho,” Winmill said.
For his actions, Kulow received a five-year hunting ban and was hit with $50,000 worth of fines, was ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution and got five years of probation. Andrea Major received a four-year hunting ban, a $30,000 fine, $15,000 worth of restitution and is matching her fiance’s five years of probation.
Eborn’s sentencing is still ahead.
