"Hunting" from a helicopter...
June 9, 2008, 10:41PM
Agent tells court he bribed Russian officials for hunts
He says he didn't know shooting from helicopter was against law
By CINDY GEORGE
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
The Virginia agent who booked a 2002 Siberian hunting trip for Houston energy magnate Dan Duncan admitted in federal court Monday that his company bribed government officials in Russia to accomplish big-game adventure trips.
On trial here, Robert Kern and The Hunting Consortium Ltd. are charged with breaking the Lacey Act, a federal law prohibiting importation of wildlife knowingly taken in violation of another country's laws.
During a September 2002 excursion, Duncan, Conroe taxidermist Mike Simpson and other hunters shot moose and sheep from a helicopter.
Generally, Russian law bans shooting from above, but exceptions are allowed if the outing is for economic purposes. During testimony last week, Duncan and the other hunters said they thought the trip passed muster because the moose meat was destined for a children's school. None of the hunters are charged in the indictment.
Under questioning Monday from defense lawyer Howard "Toby" Vick, Kern said he was uncomfortable with shooting animals from above but didn't know it was against Russian law.
"I had seen and heard of many exceptions for meat gathering, and I had heard that it was a common practice," Kern told jurors, adding that he found it "disgusting" but kept quiet. "It could also be damaging to my company. ... The vast majority of the hunting community doesn't condone that conduct, and I was, frankly, embarrassed by it," Kern said.
He said Simpson handled the importation and had the proper license to do so through Houston.
"I believed it then, and I believe it today, that these trophies were legally taken," he said. "Immorally, unfairly, but not illegally."
During cross-examination, Justice Department lawyer Wayne Hettenbach asked questions revealing that Kern displayed the same trophies he felt were collected unethically at a 2003 Safari Club International exhibition that stopped in Houston. Hettenbach also presented letters and e-mails written by Kern stating that Russian law did not allow using a helicopter as a shooting platform.
And, in another apparent effort to impeach Kern's character, the government presented hunting consortium expense sheets that include a line for bribes.
Kern explained that the notation of a "bribe" amounted to "tips" used to overcome false claims of full flights by airline workers or to force customs agents to correct serial numbers on intentionally misprinted gun permits.
The defense also brought a Russian government official to court to back up claims by Kern and the hunters about an economic or humanitarian exemption that allows shooting from above.
Speaking through a translator, Victor Kropivyansky, a regional wildlife deputy director, said that the 2002 trip was licensed and provided an economic benefit "because it's free meat." The director denied taking bribes.
U.S. District Judge David Hittner would not allow the government to show jurors a video that might lead them to believe Kropivyansky pocketed U.S. dollars from another set of hunters whose trip was coordinated by Kern's company.
The defense wrapped its case with Kern's testimony. The government rested last week. Jurors are expected to hear closing arguments this morning and begin deliberations later today.
cindy.george@chron.com
Agent tells court he bribed Russian officials for hunts
He says he didn't know shooting from helicopter was against law
By CINDY GEORGE
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
The Virginia agent who booked a 2002 Siberian hunting trip for Houston energy magnate Dan Duncan admitted in federal court Monday that his company bribed government officials in Russia to accomplish big-game adventure trips.
On trial here, Robert Kern and The Hunting Consortium Ltd. are charged with breaking the Lacey Act, a federal law prohibiting importation of wildlife knowingly taken in violation of another country's laws.
During a September 2002 excursion, Duncan, Conroe taxidermist Mike Simpson and other hunters shot moose and sheep from a helicopter.
Generally, Russian law bans shooting from above, but exceptions are allowed if the outing is for economic purposes. During testimony last week, Duncan and the other hunters said they thought the trip passed muster because the moose meat was destined for a children's school. None of the hunters are charged in the indictment.
Under questioning Monday from defense lawyer Howard "Toby" Vick, Kern said he was uncomfortable with shooting animals from above but didn't know it was against Russian law.
"I had seen and heard of many exceptions for meat gathering, and I had heard that it was a common practice," Kern told jurors, adding that he found it "disgusting" but kept quiet. "It could also be damaging to my company. ... The vast majority of the hunting community doesn't condone that conduct, and I was, frankly, embarrassed by it," Kern said.
He said Simpson handled the importation and had the proper license to do so through Houston.
"I believed it then, and I believe it today, that these trophies were legally taken," he said. "Immorally, unfairly, but not illegally."
During cross-examination, Justice Department lawyer Wayne Hettenbach asked questions revealing that Kern displayed the same trophies he felt were collected unethically at a 2003 Safari Club International exhibition that stopped in Houston. Hettenbach also presented letters and e-mails written by Kern stating that Russian law did not allow using a helicopter as a shooting platform.
And, in another apparent effort to impeach Kern's character, the government presented hunting consortium expense sheets that include a line for bribes.
Kern explained that the notation of a "bribe" amounted to "tips" used to overcome false claims of full flights by airline workers or to force customs agents to correct serial numbers on intentionally misprinted gun permits.
The defense also brought a Russian government official to court to back up claims by Kern and the hunters about an economic or humanitarian exemption that allows shooting from above.
Speaking through a translator, Victor Kropivyansky, a regional wildlife deputy director, said that the 2002 trip was licensed and provided an economic benefit "because it's free meat." The director denied taking bribes.
U.S. District Judge David Hittner would not allow the government to show jurors a video that might lead them to believe Kropivyansky pocketed U.S. dollars from another set of hunters whose trip was coordinated by Kern's company.
The defense wrapped its case with Kern's testimony. The government rested last week. Jurors are expected to hear closing arguments this morning and begin deliberations later today.
cindy.george@chron.com
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