Twin Falls Man Sentenced for Illegally Harvesting Wood

BOISE, Idaho (KLIX)-A Twin Falls man will have to serve three years of probation for cutting wood in the South Hills without a permit in 2018.

According to U.S. Attorney Bart Davis, 23-year-old Mark James was handed the sentence after he pleaded guilty in May to the charge of theft of government property. U.S. District Judge Lynn Winmill also ordered James to pay $1,680 in restitution. In 2018, James was accused of harvesting wood on Deadline Ridge near the summer homes on the Sawtooth National Forest without a permit.

During the investigation court documents say James told the U.S. Forest Service he had cut 12 cords of firewood and sold it for $140 per cord online.