Wasilla Guide Faces Prison Time, Worldwide Hunt Ban Following Illegal Kodiak Island Hunts

Via Alaska’a News Source, after staging illegal guided hunts on Kodiak Island, a Wasilla outfitter is facing prison sentence and a worldwide hunting ban (his business partner is also being punished). Here are some details:

Theodore Turgeon, 29, received six months in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and a $20,000 fine after pleading guilty to four felony counts of violating the Lacey Act — a federal law prohibiting commercial activity involving illegally taken wildlife. His business partner, Charles Emmi, 29, avoided prison but was handed four years of federal probation and a $30,000 fine after pleading guilty to four misdemeanor Lacey Act counts. Both men entered their pleas in December 2025.

The case stemmed from a scheme the two men launched in March 2021 initially under the name “The Rock Outfitters LLC,” which court documents describe as an attempt to profit from big game hunting expeditions without the required state licenses. Neither man ever held a big game guide-outfitter license in Alaska. …

Beyond the prison term and fines, the court imposed sweeping conditions on both defendants. Turgeon must forfeit $14,982.61, accepted in lieu of seizing the M/V Sound Choice, as well as the rifle and scope used in the November 2022 hunt. He is subject to a worldwide hunting and fishing ban and is barred from obtaining a transporter or guide license for the duration of his supervised release.

Alaska’s News Source also reported that on a second illegal hunt, the guide told his clients he was defying state laws:

It was during this trip that Turgeon made a statement that would later be cited in court. He openly admitted to clients that he was guiding them illegally and declared, “f*** the State of Alaska’s regulations.”