St. Mary’s man sentenced to 3 years for illegal wildlife guiding scheme

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - A St. Mary's man was sentenced last week to three years in prison and is required to pay over $64,000 in restitution for running illegal guiding services and collecting thousands in fraudulent proceeds from the scheme.

According to court documents, in October 2021, Michael Beans, 36, began openly advertising guide-outfitter and transporter services for the 2022, 2023 and 2024 bull moose hunting seasons on specific social media hunting forums. At all times relevant to the case, Beans was not licensed by the state of Alaska as a big game guide-outfitter nor transporter.

Beans contacted prospective hunters by text, phone or social media messaging platform, and communicated that he would reduce the hunting rates if hunters paid in full early or assisted Beans by advancing fees months before the hunt occurred. In some messages, Beans conveyed costs of the hunt and then received deposits to formalize the booking through mobile money transferring applications or other electronic financial services.

Between October 2021 to December 2022, Beans fraudulently collected more than $59,000 in deposits, advanced payments and other funds from roughly 37 non-Alaska resident hunters for guide-outfitted and/or big game transporter services for bull moose hunts when not licensed to do so by the state of Alaska.

On Sept. 1, 2022, the first group of hunters arrived in St. Mary's from across the country. Beans cancelled all contracted hunts without meeting any of the hunters in person. Beans did not refund any hunters for the cancelled hunts, except for $700 returned to one hunter.

From Sept. 19 to Sept. 24, 2022, three hunters arrived in St. Mary's to hunt with Beans. The defendant tried to cancel the hunt, but the hunters located Beans in St. Mary's and he took them on the hunt consistent with their agreement. Acting as the guide-outfitter or transporter, Beans assisted the hunters in killing three bull moose, even though he was not licensed to do so.

On Oct. 1, 2024, Beans pleaded guilty to one count of Lacey Act violations and one count of wire fraud. In handing down the sentence, the Court also ordered Beans to serve three years on supervised release upon completion of his prison sentence. Beans is also required to pay $64,110 in restitution that will be broken out to each victim in this case.

"Mr. Beans egregiously exploited unsuspecting hunters and orchestrated a hunt that resulted in the illegal killing of three bull moose," said U.S. Attorney Michael J. Heyman for the District of Alaska. "His actions not only violate the law but are also an affront to the law-abiding guide-outfitters who respect Alaska's wildlife community. My office is committed to working with our law enforcement partners statewide to ensure that the regulations governing hunting in Alaska are enforced and upheld, and those who flagrantly violate them are brought to justice."

"Alaska's guide and transporter licensing requirements exist to protect wildlife resources, ensure lawful hunting practices, and maintain a level playing field for licensed operators who follow the law," said Assistant Director Doug Ault, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. "Illegal guided hunts for bull moose and other species undermine those safeguards and threaten public trust in Alaska's world-renowned hunting system. In this case, Mr. Beans not only operated without proper licensure but also deceived dozens of hunters, collecting substantial payments for hunts he largely failed to deliver and leaving many victims without refunds. This sentencing reflects our commitment to aggressively investigating wildlife crimes and holding violators accountable."

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services and the Alaska Wildlife Troopers investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Ainsley McNerney prosecuted the case.

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