Brandon Man Sentenced After Conviction For Trafficking Migratory Birds

Tampa, Florida - U.S. District Judge Charlene Honeywell has sentenced Ernesto Gonzalez Campos (36, Brandon) to 18 months' probation, to include a $1,000 fine and 50 hours of community service. Campos was found guilty by a federal jury on November 30, 2023.

Campos is the most recent individual to be sentenced in "Operation Ornery Birds II." Five others were previously sentenced in the Middle District of Florida. Operation Ornery Birds II was a Florida-wide investigation conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Campos engaged in the ongoing capture, sale, and trade of protected migratory songbirds. On at least three occasions in 2020 and 2021, Campos sold and traded indigo buntings, painted buntings, rose-breasted grosbeaks, and blue grosbeaks, all of which are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). Campos trapped the birds from the wild and, once they were tamed, sold them within the songbird community.

This case was investigated by United States Fish and Wildlife Service and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conversation Commission. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ilyssa Spergel and Senior Trial Attorney Patrick Duggan of ENRD's Environmental Crimes Section.