Albertan smuggled bulls to U.S.
Sat, August 7, 2004
By CP, The Calgary Sun
MISSOULA -- An Alberta rancher has pleaded guilty to smuggling rodeo bulls across the U.S. border in violation of the current ban on Canadian cattle imports. Greg Kesler, 59, of Magrath, entered guilty pleas in July to two counts of fraudulently importing live ruminants.
The maximum penalty for the offence is five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.
The veteran Canadian rodeo stock promoter will be sentenced Nov. 5.
The U.S. border has remained closed to live Canadian cattle since a case of mad cow disease was discovered in Alberta in May 2003.
The U.S. Department of Justice said Kesler hid 23 bulls in a shipment of horses to get them across the border in June 2003.
Kesler also brought another six bulls across the border last January, said officials.
An investigation was launched in the spring after rumours flooded the rodeo circuit that bulls had been brought across the border illegally.
Kesler already paid a $600 US fine for state permit violations related to transporting the animals.
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