Simi Valley man sentenced to jail for killing protected mountain lion
(National Parks Service)
VENTURA, Calif. - The Simi Valley man accused of shooting and killing P-38, a protected mountain lion, had pled guilty and was sentenced to 30 days in Ventura County Jail.
The Ventura County District Attorney's Office announced that 60-year-old Alfredo Gonzalez pled guilty to the unlawful killing on Thursday and vandalizing P-38's GPS collar.
In addition to jail time, the judge sentenced Gonzalez to 30 days in a work-release program and 240 hours of community service at an animal shelter. He was also placed on three years of summary probation and ordered to pay restitution.
The DA's Office says the rifle Gonzalez used to shoot the mountain lion was destroyed after being declared a nuisance by the Court.
RELATED: Simi Valley man criminally charged with shooting, killing P-38 mountain lion
P-38 was a mountain lion that was born in 2012 and was first collared in 2015. It predominantly roamed portions of the Santa Susana Mountains. In July 2018, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife received a report from biologists with the National Park Services that P-38 may have been killed in Simi Valley after a mortality signal was detected days earlier.
Authorities later discovered P-38 had died from a gunshot wound to the head.