Country Music Star Gentry charged with killing a bear
Yahoo
Troy Lee Gentry, half of the country music duo Montgomery Gentry, has been charged with killing a tame bear and then making it look as if it was a hunting trophy, authorities said on Wednesday.
A top country act since the late 1990s with such hits as "Good Clean Fun," Gentry, 39, was arraigned in federal court this week on a charge of conspiracy to falsely label an animal.
The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $20,000 fine.
According to an indictment unsealed this week, in October 2004 Gentry paid $4,650 to shoot the "trophy-caliber" bear named "Cubby" at the Minnesota Wildlife Connection in northern Minnesota, which advertises itself as a place where animals can be photographed in the wild.
After using a bow and arrow to kill the animal inside its pen, Gentry and the owner of the preserve tagged the bear and registered it with the state as if it had been killed in the wild. A videotape was edited to make it appear that Gentry had hunted down the bear.
Attempts to reach Gentry, who was freed on bond, were unsuccessful.
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