Two YouTubers behind the outdoor channel Creek Kings Outdoors have been sentenced after pleading guilty to dozens of wildlife offenses linked to an illegal deer poaching investigation in Ohio.
Authorities said William Bethel, 28, and Justin Booth, 23, each pleaded guilty to 20 charges after investigators found they illegally hunted white-tailed deer between 2019 and 2024, including on protected land and private property without permission.
Officials also alleged that videos posted on the Creek Kings Outdoors YouTube channel featured deer that had been illegally taken in Ohio but were falsely claimed to have been harvested in Kentucky.
The pair were ordered to pay more than $37,000 in combined restitution, fines, fees, and court costs.
They were also sentenced to nine days in jail during the 2026–2027 hunting season, placed on five years of probation, and banned from entering Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks during that period.
In addition, both lost their hunting, fishing, and trapping privileges for five years.
The investigation was conducted by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources with assistance from Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks, the Ohio State Highway Patrol Computer Crimes Unit, and local prosecutors.