In-flight Chat Leads to Discovery of Illegal Wildlife Trafficking in California

A casual conversation with undercover officers revealed a couple's possession of endangered species and sparked a broader investigation.

California wildlife officers uncovered illegal possession of a green sea turtle skull, a federally endangered species, during a November 2023 flight conversation with a Northern California couple.
The couple, Byron Lee Fitzpatrick and Shannon Lee Price, also admitted to unlawfully hunting a protected mountain lion and revealed a relative's 'trophy room' containing taxidermied protected species.
Search warrants executed at the couple's Chico home and their relative's Napa County residence led to the seizure of protected animal parts, including mountain lion claws, a ringtail cat, a barn owl mount, and taxidermied wolverines and mountain lions.
Byron Lee Fitzpatrick, Shannon Lee Price, and Harry Vern Fitzpatrick faced fines, probation, and hunting prohibitions after pleading guilty to multiple state and federal wildlife violations.
Officials emphasized the broader implications of wildlife trafficking, linking it to funding transnational criminal organizations and underlining the importance of law enforcement in protecting natural resources.