By KEVIN CHIRI
Slidell news bureau
SLIDELL – Three Slidell men—including two well-known area businessmen—were indicted on federal charges by a Mississippi grand jury for allegedly importing white-tailed deer to their hunting camps across state lines from Louisiana.
Ronald “Ronnie” Reine, 67, and Brian R. Reine, 44, were indicted along with their primary company, Omni Pinnacle, LLC, all of Slidell. Also named in the indictment was co-conspirator Bruce Swilley Jr., 27.
The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis and Special Agent in Charge Luis Santiago of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The defendants were arraigned in U.S. District Court and each was released on a $25,000 unsecured bond. A trial is scheduled for March 17, 2014 before U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden in Gulfport. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine on each count. Omni Pinnacle, LLC faces a maximum fine of $500,000.
According to the indictment, from January of 2011 through December of 2012, the three men utilized Omni Pinnacle and conspired to ship white-tailed deer in interstate commerce in violation of state and federal laws.
Brian R. Reine operated a wildlife enclosure in Lamar County, Mississippi known as Half Moon Ranch. Ronald W. Reine operated a wildlife enclosure in Pearl River County, Mississippi known as Oak Investments, LLC/“Hunter’s Bluff”.
The indictment also alleges that it was part of the conspiracy that the defendants would unlawfully bring the live white-tailed deer into Mississippi for the purpose of breeding and killing trophy white-tailed buck deer, frequently as part of trips for clients doing business with Omni Pinnacle, primary a construction and development company. The defendants bought and illegally transported deer into Mississippi from Indiana and Pennsylvania.
Santiago said the reason for the law is that infectious diseases among white-tailed deer can easily be transmitted to other herds and has brought about the need to kill entire herds of deer to keep disease from spreading. The indictment did not detail the total number of deer involved.
Swilley and Brian Reine were also accused of making false statements to the sellers, or noting on certificates of veterinary inspection, by claiming the deer were being taken to Louisiana, not Mississippi.
The Lacey Act makes it unlawful for any person to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire or purchase wildlife that were taken, possessed, transported or sold in violation of any law or regulation of any state. The offense becomes a felony crime if the defendant knowingly engaged in conduct involving the purchase or sale, offer to purchase or sell or intent to purchase or sell, wildlife with a market value in excess of $350, knowing that the wildlife were taken, possessed, transported or sold in violation of, or in a manner unlawful under, a law or regulation of any state.
“The illegal importation of white-tailed deer into Mississippi is a growing problem with the potential for a devastating impact on our native deer herd” said U.S. Attorney Davis. “This indictment is the beginning of our efforts to combat the illegal importation of white-tailed deer and we will continue to partner with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks to identify, investigate, and prosecute people who have chosen to violate the law on importing white-tail deer.”
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Special Agent in Charge Santiago stated “We take our mission working with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks and the citizens of Mississippi in conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats very seriously. We will continue working vigorously investigating those who choose to violate state and federal laws.”
This case was investigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife Fisheries and Parks. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Darren J. LaMarca.
The public is reminded that an indictment is merely an accusation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.