PORTLAND, Maine — A man from Maine pleaded guilty Tuesday at the U.S. District Court in Portland to charges that he trafficked whale and bird parts.

Sergey Bachkovsky of Greene is accused of violating the Lacey Act by importing wildlife items from Eastern Europe and selling them online to buyers across the US between June and March 2024, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.

The Lacey Act prohibits the trafficking of illegally taken plants or wildlife across states and international borders, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services.

The trafficked wildlife items reportedly included sperm whale and marine mammal teeth, blue whale and Antarctic minke whale ear bones, and a broad-winged hawk carcass, the release said.

Court documents further reveal wildlif

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