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ST. GEORGE - Four men pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of wanton destruction of protected wildlife Thursday after reaching a plea bargain with prosecutors over a November poaching incident.
Eligio Baldovinos-Ambris, 33, of Las Vegas, Enrique P. Caldera, 46, of St. George, Jesus Nunes, 56, of Bellflower, Calif., and Ezequiel Parra-Gomez, 44, of Las Vegas were initially charged with third-degree felonies but the plea agreement reduced the charges to Class B misdemeanors.
"About the 15th of November of last year, officers heard gunshots in an area of Washington County," Judge G. Rand Beacham read from the probable cause statement as he spoke with the suspects. "They found you and several other people with three deer that had been killed. ... And it doesn't say so, but they apparently were not killed in accordance with Utah hunting regulations."
The incident occurred near Vineyard, 10 miles north of St. George. Parra-Gomez was also found with three additional deer hanging from the bucket of a front-end loader and a cottontail rabbit, which resulted in a second misdemeanor charge for him.
Lynn Chamberlain, a Division of Wildlife Resources spokesman, said investigators eventually found four does, a fawn and a buck. Eight rifles were also seized.
Chamberlain said the men were hunting for food and had obtained a couple hundred pounds of meat. The hunting season closed in October.
The first suspects' cases were delayed Thursday until a court interpreter arrived.
After each suspect admitted involvement in the poaching incident and entered a guilty plea, Beacham sentenced them to 180 days in jail with a $1,000 fine for each charge, which was suspended according to attorney recommendations in the plea agreement.
Instead, each suspect received 12 months probation and a $500 fine, plus an additional order of $500 restitution to Utah Fish and Wildlife.
A fifth suspect, Juan Alberto Baraza-Nunez, 38, of Compton, Calif., will send his written plea by mail, according to defense attorney Susan Broberg.
A hearing to resolve the case was scheduled for March
Eligio Baldovinos-Ambris, 33, of Las Vegas, Enrique P. Caldera, 46, of St. George, Jesus Nunes, 56, of Bellflower, Calif., and Ezequiel Parra-Gomez, 44, of Las Vegas were initially charged with third-degree felonies but the plea agreement reduced the charges to Class B misdemeanors.
"About the 15th of November of last year, officers heard gunshots in an area of Washington County," Judge G. Rand Beacham read from the probable cause statement as he spoke with the suspects. "They found you and several other people with three deer that had been killed. ... And it doesn't say so, but they apparently were not killed in accordance with Utah hunting regulations."
The incident occurred near Vineyard, 10 miles north of St. George. Parra-Gomez was also found with three additional deer hanging from the bucket of a front-end loader and a cottontail rabbit, which resulted in a second misdemeanor charge for him.
Lynn Chamberlain, a Division of Wildlife Resources spokesman, said investigators eventually found four does, a fawn and a buck. Eight rifles were also seized.
Chamberlain said the men were hunting for food and had obtained a couple hundred pounds of meat. The hunting season closed in October.
The first suspects' cases were delayed Thursday until a court interpreter arrived.
After each suspect admitted involvement in the poaching incident and entered a guilty plea, Beacham sentenced them to 180 days in jail with a $1,000 fine for each charge, which was suspended according to attorney recommendations in the plea agreement.
Instead, each suspect received 12 months probation and a $500 fine, plus an additional order of $500 restitution to Utah Fish and Wildlife.
A fifth suspect, Juan Alberto Baraza-Nunez, 38, of Compton, Calif., will send his written plea by mail, according to defense attorney Susan Broberg.
A hearing to resolve the case was scheduled for March