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S/24/2007~SFVEN CALIFORNIA `ROLLER PIGEON' ENTHUSIASTS CHARGED W... Page 1 of 4 <br />0 <br />U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service <br />~' News <br />Release <br />r ~ <br />SEVEN CALIFORNIA <br />`ROLLER PIGEON' <br />ENTHUSIASTS <br />CHARGED WITH <br />KILLING, OR HELPING <br />TO KILL, PROTECTED <br />HAWKS AND FALCONS ~ <br />Contacts <br />May 24, 2007 <br />News Releases Hame Page <br />Search the':Vews Releases <br />I..S. Fish & ~t~`ildlife Service I-Io.tne <br /> <br />CA: Special Agent Lisa Nichols 619-557-5063 <br />Scott Flaherty 916-978-6156 <br />OR: David Patte 503-231-6121 <br />USDOJ: Thom Mrozek 213-894-6947 <br />Multi-State Investigation Includes Subjects in Oregon and Texas <br />Federal authorities have charged seven Southern California men <br />associated with "roller pigeon" clubs on charges related to the fatal <br />beatings and shootings of federally protected raptors. Six of the <br />defendants were arrested throughout the day yesterday as part of a <br />nationwide investigation -Operation High Roller -that is targeting <br />roller pigeon owners who believe that hawks and falcons, while <br />protected under federal law, should be killed because they attack <br />pigeons, particularly when they suffer seizures in flight and tumble <br />uncontrollably toward the ground. <br />The seven cases in Southern California, along with charges filed <br />against defendants in Oregon and Texas, are part of a 14-month <br />investigation by special agents with the United States Fish and Wildlife <br />Service. In California, a special agent infiltrated several roller pigeon <br />clubs and learned about members' efforts to trap and kill raptors, <br />specifically Cooper's hawks, red-tailed hawks and Peregrine falcons, <br />according to court documents. Investigators estimate that leaders and <br />members of the National Birmingham Roller Club (NBRC) and other <br />enthusiast organizations in the Los Angeles metropolitan area are <br />responsible for killing 1,000 to 2,000 raptors annually. One official of <br />the NBRC claims to have killed as many as 50 raptors annually for the <br />http://www.fws.gov/news/newsreleases/showNews.cfm?newsId=BE93 5795-974F-4768-D... 12/5/2007 <br />