By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – A Winlock lumber mill owner pleaded guilty today to federal violations for trafficking in specialty wood cut on national forest land.
In his plea agreement, Harold Clause Kupers, admitted he suspected the big leaf maple had been illegally taken from the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, but purchased it and made sales out-of-state of nearly $500,000, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Courtesy photo by U.S. Attorney’s Office
The so-called figured maple is particularly valuable for making musical instruments and, for example, just one shipment to PRS Guitars in Maryland from Kupers’ J & L Tonewoods sold for $21,395, according to authorities.
Kupers, 48, made his pleas for violations of the Lacey Act, in U.S. District Court in Tacoma today, according to the announcement from U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes.
According to the plea agreement, in April 2012, law enforcement officers with the U.S. Forest Service met with him and specifically informed him that he was required by Washington law to review specialized forest products permits for all persons from whom he purchased maple, Hayes stated in a news release.
Despite that, he admitted, he continued to buy the wood without requiring the harvesters to show the permit until March 2014.
Kupers faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and at least $159,000 in restitution when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle on February 8.
Three men suspected of harvesting the wood were charged with theft of government property and damaging government property.
Ryan Justice, 28, of Randle, has pleaded guilty to theft of government property and is scheduled for sentencing on December 7.
James Miller, 36, of Morton, and Kevin Mullins, 56, of Packwood, are scheduled for trial on January 12.
•••
For background, read “Feds: Tree thieves and mill owner indicted for trafficking specialty maple from Gifford Pinchot” from Friday August 7, 2015, here
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
Koop, hope you know this is the Karma you get for stealing from the public like you have for the last 25 years!
It’s too bad your wife is so high up in the department of corrections as she may very well be pulling strings for you.
There were two groups of music wood “buyers” operating in the upper Cowlitz valley about 5 years ago. I heard one of them was legitimate and was buying legal Maple from landowners. I think the other two guys were not so honest. Many old growth maples lost their burls during that period both on private land without the owner’s permission and on public land. They would just cut them out and leave the trees standing.
I have also run across places where people have been cutting live Douglas Fir illegally in the Gifford Pinchot NF for firewood.
Problem is now that we only have one forest service LEO working out of Randle with a huge area to cover. We don’t see much of him which probably makes the forest thieves pretty happy.
I do think the 3 guys who were actually providing this mill will probably get longer sentences than they should because it’s the only case the feds have made and they probably want to make an example of these poor saps.
There is nothing more frightening than to have the federal court come down on you and these guys aren’t willing or able to spend the money for first class representation so they will do the time.
Hammer ’em hard!
It’s culls like this that get the woods shut down for all of us.
Hopefully the feds assess back taxes & penalties too!
Don’t drop the soap Koop & Moose!