A Canadian man has been placed on six months of unsupervised probation after putting a newborn bison in his vehicle while visiting Yellowstone National Park last month.
Shamash Kassam, of Quebec, Canada, pleaded guilty on Thursday before United States Magistrate Judge Mark L. Carman. Kassam entered the plea over the telephone, according to Federal court documents.
Kassam was charged with “Nature Protection: the feeding, touching, teasing, frightening, or intentional disturbing of wildlife nesting, breeding, or other activities.”
Kassam was sentenced to six months of unsupervised probation and ordered to pay a total of $735 in financial penalties. The breakdown of financial penalties are as follows: $200 fine, $500 community service payment, $25 processing fee, and $10 special assessment.
Special conditions of Kassam’s probation include “obey all laws, pay all monetary penalties by October 31, 2016, shall not pick up anymore bison,” according to court documents.
The charge stemmed from an incident in Yellowstone National Park on May 9th in which Kassam apparently picked up a bison calf that was in a roadway. Kassam allegedly told investigators that the calf was alone in the road shivering and appeared to seek the warmth from the vehicle’s engine. After about 20 minutes, Kassam allegedly said he decided to pick up the calf and bring it to the nearby Buffalo Ranch to call law enforcement for assistance.
Attempts by Park personnel to reunite the calf with its mother failed, and the calf was later euthanized.