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Two N.C. men were sentenced to federal prison Monday after pleading guilty to charges of attempting to transport, buy or sell an American black bear in Haywood County, authorities said.
Bobby Allen Gibson, 24, and Steven Louis Broom, 31, were charged in July 2008.
It isn't clear what each man's role in the transaction was or what their plans were for the bear.
A judge ordered them both to serve ten months in prison, followed by a year of federal parole and 100 hours of community service.
Both men are from small towns southwest of Asheville: Gibson from Tuckasegee, and Broom from Cullowhee.
During their year of parole, both men are subject to “banishment” from federal lands and forbidden to hunt, fish or possess any firearms, according to the U.S. Attorney's office in Charlotte.
Broom is also forbidden from owning a dog of any kind.
Court records show Gibson has been convicted of hunting without a license and taking game during closed season. He was sentenced to 20 days in jail and two years probation in March, and is awaiting trial on auto theft and drug charges.
Broom has been previously convicted of possessing a rifle in a bear sanctuary. He was also sentenced to at least six months in jail followed by two years probation in 2007 for possession of methamphetamine.
