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NYC man pleads guilty to selling cougar head, other exotic animal parts to undercover investigator
A New York City man has pleaded guilty to attempting to sell prohibited wild animal parts, including a cougar head.
Usher Weiss, 26, met with an undercover investigator for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation on Nov. 2, 2023, according to a news release from the department. The two met at a basement in Brooklyn, where Weiss gave the undercover investigator a cougar head mount for $900. Weiss also offered a “full cheetah head mount” for $10,000, the news release said.
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Weiss and the investigator met a second time in December, where he handed the undercover investigator the cheetah head mount and multiple other animal remains, including the skull of a big cat, the skin of a seal pup and a bird mount.
Weiss also had a full taxidermied alligator, a tiger skin, a cheetah skin and an elephant foot, the news release said.
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Weiss was charged with violating environmental conservation laws. He pleaded guilty on Thursday.
As part of his plea, Weiss must pay a $5,000 fine. He also had to surrender all additional contraband in his possession. Weiss surrendered the taxidermied alligator, animal skins and elephant foot to the Department of Environmental Conservation in April. He also surrendered other contraband, but the department did not share details of what it was.
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
“We’re committed to stopping the illegal wildlife trade in our communities, and by prosecuting cases like this, we’re not just enforcing the law — we’re sending a strong message that protecting endangered species from harm is a priority,” District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in the news release.
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Yellowstone hiker burned when she falls into scalding water near Old Faithful, park officials say
Yellowstone National Park, Wyo. — A New Hampshire woman suffered severe burns on her leg after hiking off-trail in Yellowstone National Park and falling into scalding water in a thermal area near the Old Faithful geyser, park officials said.
The 60-year-old woman from Windsor, New Hampshire, along with her husband and their leashed dog were walking off a designated trail near the Mallard Lake Trailhead on Monday afternoon when she broke through a thin crust over the water and suffered second- and third-degree burns to her lower leg, park officials said. Her husband and the dog weren’t injured.
The woman was flown to Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls, Idaho for treatment.
National Park Service / Jacob W. Frank
Park visitors are reminded to stay on boardwalks and trails in hydrothermal areas and exercise extreme caution. The ground in those areas is fragile and thin and there’s scalding water just below the surface, park officials said.
Pets are allowed in limited, developed areas of Yellowstone park but are prohibited on boardwalks, hiking trails, in the backcountry and in thermal areas.
The incident is under investigation. The woman’s name wasn’t made public.
This is the first known thermal injury in Yellowstone in 2024, park officials said in a statement. The park had recorded 3.5 million visitors through August this year.
Hot springs have injured and killed more people in Yellowstone National Park than any other natural feature, the National Park Service said. At least 22 people have died from hot spring-related injuries in and around the 3,471-square-mile national park since 1890, park officials have said.