An Alaskan hunter is looking at a possible fine of $12,500 after pleading guilty to shooting a Fannin sheep in the Yukon four years ago and claiming it was an American ram.

Donald Lee appeared virtually in territorial court this morning in what was supposed to be a guilty plea and a sentencing submission.

Instead, Lee and Crown prosecutor Noel Sinclair couldn’t agree on a joint sentencing submission.

Sinclair suggested a $12,500 fine, while Lee said he would be happier with the minimum $5,000 fine and a lengthy hunting prohibition.

That disagreement came after Judge Karen Ruddy explained to Lee that he didn’t have to go along with Sinclair’s submission.

The basic facts in the case are fairly simple.

On. Aug. 13, 2017, Lee was hunting in the border region west of Dawson City near Harrison Creek. He had come in from Alaska after several days of boating and hiking.

It’s an area he said he’s hunted for nine years. The court was told it’s a very remote area.

Lee saw a Fannin sheep ram, and after a short stalk, shot it.

Lee told the court that while he knew he was near the border, which is marked by a clear-cut strip six metres wide, he thought the ram was on the Alaskan side.

After he dropped the ram with a single shot, he went to retrieve it – and realized it was on the Yukon side of the border.

After pondering briefly what he should do, he butchered the animal and packed it back to the Alaskan side.

Lee had the head and front of the chest mounted and filed a report as if the animal had been shot in Alaska.

His deception wasn’t revealed until a year later – when Lee posted photos of the sheep on a Facebook page for sheep hunters.

Every digital photo has data attached to it that reveal the geographic location where it was taken, among other things, if you know what to look for.

In this instance, the photo or photos showed the photo had been taken in the Yukon about 120 metres from the border.

An anonymous tip was sent to wildlife authorities in Canada, and an investigation commenced.

Lee acknowledged in the early stages of the investigation what he had done.

He called it one of a series of bad decisions involving the sheep.

He said he now wishes he could have found a way to contact Canadian officials about the sheep at the time.

The investigation took many months to wrap up, and involved Alaskan wildlife officials. It took even longer for the case to come to court.

Today marked Lee’s first appearance.

The mounted sheep was seized, and will be forfeited by Lee.

Judge Ruddy deferred her ruling until next Friday afternoon.