Three Montana men were sentenced for killing a mountain lion within Yellowstone National Park/NPS, Connor Meyer file

Three Montana men who crossed into Yellowstone National Park to kill a mountain lion have been fined about $1,700 each and placed on three years of unsupervised probation.

The three, all from Livingston, crossed into the park north of the Yellowstone River on December 12 to kill the cat, according to a park release.

According to court documents, Austin Peterson, Trey Juhnke, and Corbin Simmons each admitted to shooting the lion and transporting the carcass back to their vehicle. Simmons then falsely claimed to have harvested the animal north of the park boundary in Montana. This affected Montana's quota system by denying a legal hunter the opportunity to legally harvest a lion, the park release said Wednesday.

Last Friday the 20-year-old Peterson was ordered to pay approximately $1,700 in restitution and fees, and ordered to serve three years of unsupervised probation. During that time, he is banned from hunting, fishing, or trapping worldwide, the release said. Juhnke, 20, and Simmons, 19, received similar sentences at hearings in April 2019. All three pleaded guilty to the charges at prior court hearings, according to the park.

“I would like to express a sincere thank you to Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, law enforcement officers at Yellowstone National Park, the National Park Service Investigative Services Branch, and the U.S. Attorney's Office - District of Wyoming for being involved in this case,” said Yellowstone Chief Ranger Pete Webster. “Their thorough work spotlighted this egregious act and the consequences incurred for hunting illegally in Yellowstone National Park.”

Under the Lacey Act, it is unlawful to import, export, sell, acquire, or purchase fish, wildlife or plants that are taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of U.S. or Indian law or in interstate or foreign commerce involving any fish, wildlife, or plants taken possessed or sold in violation of State or foreign law.

Though seldom seen by the public, biologists estimate that 20-31 adult cougars reside year-round in Yellowstone's northern range (an average of 12-18 females and 8-13 males). These estimates are based on field surveys and statistical analyses conducted from 2014–2017. Biologists found higher estimates in the later years of the study. The numbers do not include kitten and sub-adult cougars that accompany a portion of the adult females each year. Monitoring efforts since 2017 suggest a stable population consistent with these estimates for previous years.