A Lawrence County farmer and one of his employees are facing federal charges for allegedly using a restricted-use pesticide to kill migratory birds last summer.

Robert Yost, 50, of New Galilee, and Jacob Reese, 25, of Enon Valley, are named as defendants in a three-count indictment alleging they spread whole corn kernels coated in carbofuran, a registered restricted-use pesticide, in and around a leased soybean field to kill migratory birds and ended up killing 17 Canada geese, 10 red-winged blackbirds and a mallard duck in June 2020.

The Pennsylvania Game Commission, which assisted in the investigation, said the dead birds were found a short distance from where they ate the tainted corn. Yost and Reese attempted to conceal the alleged poisoning by destroying the feed bag containing the carbofuran-laced corn, according to the commission. Children were regularly present around the field, the commission added.

Yost operates Yost Farm in Lawrence County. The farm leased the field where the defendants were trying to get rid of migratory birds, according to the commission. Reese is a Yost employee.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has determined that the dietary, worker and ecological risks for all uses of carbofuran were unacceptable and that all products containing carbofuran generally caused unreasonable adverse effects on humans and the environment, according to the commission.

Yost and Reese are charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of violating the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act and one count of violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The defendants face a total maximum penalty of 13 months of imprisonment and $31,000 in fines.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Office of Law Enforcement, the Environmental Protection Agency's Criminal Investigation Division, the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture worked jointly on the investigation.

Stephen R. Kaufman, acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, announced the indictment.