Cooper Gets Probation in Nebraska Deer Hunting Scheme

LINCOLN, NEBRASKA – Mark Cooper, 73, of North Platte, Nebraska, dodged jail time but won’t be near a hunting ground anytime soon. Cooper was sentenced on September 11, 2025, in federal court to two years’ probation, a $5,000 fine, and a hefty $15,000 in restitution for violating the Lacey Act, a federal law protecting wildlife. The case stemmed from a 2019 mule deer hunt orchestrated by Dustin Noble and his operation, Noble Outdoors.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office, led by Lesley A. Woods, detailed how Cooper acted as a key associate to Noble, a North Platte resident who ran a big game guiding and outfitting business between 2015 and 2021. Noble wasn’t just guiding hunts; he was running a full-blown illegal operation, providing services to out-of-state clients and converting illegally obtained trophies into taxidermy mounts. The investigation revealed a conspiracy involving 114 unlawful hunts targeting trophy animals.

On October 31, 2019, Cooper illegally bagged a 172-inch 5×5 mule deer during archery season in Lincoln County, Nebraska. The method was particularly brazen: Cooper shot the deer from the seated position *inside* Noble’s pickup truck while parked on a public roadway, using a center-fire rifle – both violations of Nebraska state law. Archery season prohibits firearms, and shooting from a roadway is strictly forbidden. This wasn’t a one-off incident. Just days later, on November 7, 2019, Cooper knowingly shipped illegally obtained wildlife skins, including his own deer and another trophy mule deer taken illegally by Noble, to a fur dressing company in Michigan.

Judge Susan M. Bazis didn’t just hand down a fine and probation. Cooper was forced to forfeit a 5×5 mule deer taxidermy mount from the illegal hunt, along with three other mule deer mounts, antler sets, and white-tailed deer antlers. More damning, Bazis issued a two-year ban prohibiting Cooper from hunting, fishing, trapping, guiding, or even being *present* with anyone engaged in those activities. This effectively sidelines Cooper from the outdoors for the foreseeable future.

The scope of Noble’s operation was staggering. Investigators uncovered the illegal taking of over 12 species of wildlife, including 61 mule deer, 33 wild turkeys, 4 pronghorn, 3 white-tailed deer, an American alligator, a timber rattlesnake, and various other game animals. The case represents the culmination of a multi-year investigation and the final prosecution of numerous defendants connected to Noble and Noble Outdoors.

Twenty individuals have now been sentenced in connection with the Noble Outdoors conspiracy, collectively receiving 22 months’ imprisonment and 15 years’ probation. While Cooper avoided jail, the sentencing sends a clear message: assisting in illegal wildlife trafficking carries serious consequences, even if you’re just the associate holding the rifle – or shipping the hides.

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