Robert Yost, a 52-year-old farmer from New Galilee in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced for using a toxic pesticide to kill migratory birds on his farm.
According to the Department of Justice, Yost and his employee, Jacob Reese, 27, of Enon Valley, conspired to kill protected migratory birds using carbofuran, a registered restricted-use pesticide banned by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2009.
The evidence presented at trial established that Yost and Reese spread whole kernel corn coated in carbofuran in a leased field used for soybean cultivation, attracting and killing approximately 17 Canada geese, 10 red-winged blackbirds, and one mallard duck.
Yost and Reese were found guilty by United States District Judge W. Scott Hardy in January 2024, following a bench trial in October 2022. In May 2024, Judge Hardy sentenced Yost to a year of probation, a $21,000 fine, and 100 hours of community service focused on wildlife conservation or farm safety.
Reese was also sentenced to a year of probation, a $5,500 fine, and 50 hours of community service. The Court emphasized that the defendants’ crimes were serious, created a risk to the environment, and harmed the public’s trust in the source of their food.
Assistant United States Attorneys Jacqueline C. Brown and Nicole A. Stockey, and Special Assistant United States Attorney Perry D. McDaniel, prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States. United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan commended the agencies involved in the investigation, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – Office of Law Enforcement, Environmental Protection Agency – Criminal Investigation Division, Pennsylvania Game Commission, and Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
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Key Facts
- State: Pennsylvania
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Environmental Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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