2 Utah men charged in alleged wild horse scheme

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A federal grand jury is charging two Utah men with multiple counts of fraud in an alleged scheme to buy dozens of wild horses at discounted rates and sell them to commercial processors in Mexico.

Charges filed Wednesday in federal court in Salt Lake City say the men bought 64 wild horses from the Bureau of Land Management between February and August. The men claimed the wild horses would be used for breeding, which qualified them for lower purchase prices.

The two men are each charged with four counts of wire fraud, two counts of false statements and one count of aiding or abetting.

BLM officials became suspicious and alerted federal authorities, who intercepted a truck from Utah in August carrying 47 of the horses to the Mexican border.