Fairbanks Men Indicted on Federal Charges for Wildlife Conspiracy, Wire Fraud, Money Laundering

FAIRBANKS, Alaska – A federal grand jury in Alaska returned an indictment on July 20 charging two Fairbanks men with eight federal charges linked to an illegal big-game guide-outfitter operation.

According to court documents, Jun “Harry” Liang, 59, and Brian Phelan, 51, of Fairbanks, conspired to provide guide-outfitter services for caribou and brown bear hunts in Fairbanks, while neither were licensed by the state of Alaska to do so. Liang collected around $11,000 in 2021 and $60,000 in 2022 for guided hunts.

Liang is charged with eight counts: one count Lacey Act conspiracy in violation of 18 U.S.C. §371; two counts wire fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1343; one count Lacey Act false labelling in violation of 18 U.S.C. §3372(d)(2); two counts illegal alien in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. §922(g)(5)(A); and two counts money laundering, one in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1957(a) and another in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1956(a)(1)(A)(i). Phelan is charged with one count Lacey Act conspiracy in violation of 18 U.S.C. §371 and one count Lacey Act false labelling in violation of 18 U.S.C. §3372(d)(2).

Liang was arrested and made his initial court appearance on July 14 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Scott A. Oravec of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska. Phelan is scheduled to make his initial court appearance in August. If convicted, Liang faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, and Phelan faces a maximum of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker of the District of Alaska made the announcement.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations and the IRS, with the assistance of the Alaska State Troopers, Wildlife Investigations Unit, are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven Skrocki and Carly Vosacek are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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