Men used AR-style rifles to kill protected wild burros in Mojave Desert, federal prosecutors say [View all]

Source: CBS News

Updated on: March 19, 2024 / 11:22 AM EDT


Two men have pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges for fatally shooting three wild donkeys with AR-style rifles in Southern California's Mojave Desert, prosecutors said Monday.

The men, identified as Christopher James Arnet, 32, of Colorado, and Cameron John Feikema, 36, of California, said in their plea agreements that they drove out to the desert in Arnet's truck in November 2021. The area they drove to was public land in San Bernardino County, according to a news release from the U.S. District Attorney's Office for the Central District of California. When the men got out of the truck, they were dressed in tactical gear, including helmets with night-vision goggles, and carrying short-barreled AR-style firearms.

At around 1 a.m. local time, the two men fired on wild donkeys, or burros, killing three of the animals. One animal was paralyzed and in "severe pain before it died," prosecutors said. Each man fired multiple rounds, and Arnet fired the bullet that paralyzed one of the donkeys, according to an investigation by the Bureau of Land Management.

The firearms were later seized from the men's homes. Investigators found that the weapons were unregistered, despite requirements that they be registered under federal law.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/christopher-arnet-cameron-feikema-plead-guilty-killing-wild-burros-feds-say/