YouTubers sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to deer poaching charges in Ohio

Two men from Columbus, Ohio, who posted YouTube videos about their hunting adventures pleaded guilty to 40 combined poaching-related charges, authorities said. 

William Bethel and Justin Booth of the YouTube channel "Creek Kings Outdoors" pleaded guilty in May to 20 counts each and were ordered to pay nearly $30,000 combined in restitution, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources said in a news release on Friday. 

The 28-year-old Bethel and 23-year-old Booth were charged in September 2025 after authorities said a yearlong investigation found evidence of poaching from 2019 to 2024 in Three Creeks Metro Park and on other properties the two did not have permission to hunt. Their YouTube channel featured videos of poached white-tailed deer, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources said. 

According to the news release, the men claimed the deer were harvested in Kentucky, but an investigation found the deer were harvested unlawfully in Ohio.

As part of their sentencing, the two men will serve nine days in jail during the 2026-27 hunting season. An additional 531 days were suspended. They were also placed on five years of probation, are banned from Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks properties while on probation, and their hunting, fishing and trapping privileges were removed for five years. 

Among the charges the two pleaded guilty to were hunting deer without a permit, hunting without permission, criminal trespass and possessing deer taken illegally.

Anyone who witnesses a wildlife violation in Ohio can call 1-800-762-2437. All reports are kept anonymous, officials said.