A Maine man is pleading guilty to trafficking whale and bird parts in violation of federal law.
Court records show Sergey Bachkovsky of Greene imported wildlife items from Eastern Europe and sold them online to buyers across the United States between June 2023 and March 2024. He also sold items to an undercover agent from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on eBay.
The items include parts of Blue and Sperm whales, which have been protected by the Endangered Species Act since 1973.
Bachkovsky pleaded guilty Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Portland and will be sentenced at a later date.
He faces a penalty of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.
Bachkovsky was investigated and charged as part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Operation Raw Deal, which targeted the unlawful import and resale of whale teeth and bone.
He pleaded guilty to violating the Lacey Act, which is the the oldest U.S. wildlife trafficking law.
In all, the items sold included sperm whale and marine mammal teeth (both raw items and scrimshaw art pieces), blue whale and Antarctic minke whale ear bones, and a broad-winged hawk carcass.
The charging document also includes a notice of forfeiture for wildlife items that Bachkovsky intended to sell, including marine mammal and bear teeth, whale vertebrae, and feathers and wings from eagles, hawks, owls, and vultures.
