Branden Trager of Brush Prairie, Washington, and his company, Mayhem Services LLC, were back in court in December where they were handed a heavy sentencing following their guilty pleas to Lacey Act violations. The case, which stemmed from illegal harlequin duck hunts in British Columbia, should, if nothing else, serve as a cautionary tale to everyone and anyone who might be toying with the idea of playing international waterfowl roulette.
As we reported back in July, Trager and Mayhem Services organized guided hunts targeting harlequin ducks, a colorful and rare sea duck highly sought after by waterfowl enthusiasts, during a period when Washington's hunting season for the species was closed (2022–2024). To circumvent this pesky inconvenience, Trager decided to lead three hunting parties to British Columbia, where the season remained open. However, Canadian regulations prohibit non-citizens from holding guiding licenses, leading Trager to sidestep yet another thorny regulation by misleading officials by claiming the trips were recreational rather than commercial.
Having thought he had got away with the hunts, Trager continued to push the envelope. During the hunts in the fall of 2022, the groups allegedly used motor vehicles to pursue and rally the ducks, exceeded daily bag limits, failed to make reasonable efforts to retrieve crippled birds, and neglected proper tagging. Trager then conspired with a Canadian taxidermist to smuggle the harvested ducks back to the United States, violating the Lacey Act, the nation's oldest wildlife trafficking statute that strictly prohibits the transport, sale, or purchase of wildlife taken in violation of underlying laws, such as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
It didn’t take long for someone to get wind of the nefarious happenings and unbeknownst to Trager at the time, a multi-agency investigation was launched, led by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Office of Law Enforcement with support from Homeland Security Investigations, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the British Columbia Conservation Officer Service. By 2023, authorities believed they had everything they needed to pulverize the law-bending guide and his company, which eventually led to Trager and his company pleading guilty on July 21, 2025, in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to a misdemeanor under the Lacey Act.
The hammer officially fell on Trager and Mayhem Services on December 3rd when U.S. District Court imposed sentences that matched recommendations handed down following his guilty plea. For his actions, Branden Trager was ordered to pay a $100,000 fine, serve three years of probation, and complete 180 hours of community service. His outfitting company Mayhem Services LLC was also slapped with a handsome $75,000 fine along with three years of probation.
Beyond the financial and supervisory measures, both defendants have been ordered to issue public statements on their websites and in a prominent hunting trade journal. These statements will include apologies for their blatant disregard for local and international laws all the while promoting the importance of respecting hunting laws and wildlife regulations.
The case was prosecuted by attorneys from the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington.
