Smugglers & Poachers

Three people were arrested for trying to smuggle geckos out of New Zealand. (News source.)

Six people were arrested in South Africa for trading in leopard tortoises. (News source.)

Smuggler Jailed

A German man who smuggled lizards out of New Zealand has been jailed for 14 weeks. (News source.)

Smuggled Lizards in His Underwear

Enough said. (News source.)

Missouri Turtle Dealer Sentenced

A Missouri turtle farmer was sentenced for shipping native and endangered species without permit to Japan. (News source.)

Smuggler Caught

A California man was busted for smuggling "two geckos, 11 skinks and two monitor lizards" from Australia, apparently having them strapped to his chest. (News source.)

Spider Smuggler?

A Welsh man was arrested for attempting to smuggle over 900 tarantulas and other spiders out of Brazil. He says he got them in Paraguay, and just passing through Brazil, but the Brazilians don't care -- no papers, no spiders. (News source.)

Smuggler

A man tried to smuggle ball pythons and leopard geckos (and a tarantula) into Norway, but got caught when they searched him. (News source.)

Shingleback Smuggler

A Japanese man was arrested for trying to smuggle shingleback skinks out of Australia. (News source.)

Turtles & the Law

A Massachusetts developer has run into restrictions from box turtle conservation requirements. (News source.)

The US Army wants to relocate 1100 endangered California desert tortoises. (News source.)

The USFWS is reviewing the desert tortoise for possible ESA inclusion. (News source.)

A Canadian turtle keeper was sentenced to nine months in jail for keeping threatened species, mostly Blanding's turtles. (News source.)

Sea turtles and their eggs will be banned for possession, consumption, etc., in the Bahamas soon. (News source.)

Vietnamese officials seized 10 tons of tortoise and pangolin shells smuggled in from Indonesia. (News source.)

Poachers continue to threaten the Madagascar spider tortoise. (News source.)

Smuggler Busted

If he had had the proper documentation, he could have brought them across the US/Canada border legally, but he didn't want to wait the "several months," and got busted carrying four pit vipers and six tree frogs into Canada. The fine was $1000. (News source.)

Sea Turtle Smuggling

Indonesian police seized 45 poached green sea turtles. (News source.)

Smugglers

Two suspected tortoise smugglers have been arrested in London. (News source.)

Australian Smuggler Fined

A man in NSW was fined $4,000 for trying to smuggle 12 pythons out of Western Australia. (News source.)

Turtle Legal Issues

Florida has introduced their new rules on taking freshwater turtles. (News source.)

A Maldives resort could be in trouble for their unlicensed "conservation" project with sea turtle eggs. (News source.)

A nearly $3 million "ecopassage" under a busy Florida highway is mostly to save turtles (and protect motorists), but is controversial in Congress. (News source.)

Polish customs officials arrested a Ukrainian man for smuggling tortoises. (News source.)

A Filipino man was arrested in Malaysia for smuggling/selling turtle eggs. (News source.)

Poachers

India officials are cracking down on frog poaching. (News source.)

An Indian national was arrested for smuggling turtles and fish. (News source.)

Smugglers Foiled

Australian officials found a shipment of 35 reptiles being smuggled from one state to another. (News source.)

More Malaysian Herp Smugglers

"Malaysian authorities seized 814 tortoises and 160 king cobras" that were being smuggled under a load of garlic. (News source.)

Border Patrol Agent Busted

A US Border Patrol Agent plead guilty smuggling to smuggling leopard tortoises. (News source.)

Multi-State Herp Bust

Canada and NY are pushing the p.r. on a recent illegal reptile trade bust; other state's efforts (like Pennsylvania) will probably follow soon. Aspects include smuggling massasaugas across the Canadian border, selling eastern box turtles online, and selling wild-collected snapping turtles from New York to a turtle farm in Louisiana where they were shipped to Asia mixed in with legally farmed turtles. But, of course, the publicity will focus on the "unnatural" aspects of keeping reptiles in general, the "lucrative" and implied widespread business of poaching native species, etc., rather than the very small number of people involved when considering the reptile hobby as a whole.

Details here, here, and here.

Herp Crimes

Three Florida teenagers were charged with poaching alligators. (News source.)

Gassing dens for rattlesnakes is now outlawed in Alabama. (News source.)

A gang of Indian venom smugglers was caught with king cobra venom. (News source.)

Eggs Seized

3000 yellow-spotted river turtle eggs were confiscated by the Colombian navy near the Venezuelan border. (News source.)

Herps in Crime News

Approx. 550 Afghan tortoises were recovered from smugglers in Pakistan. (News source.)

A number of rare mammals, reptiles, and invertebrates were stolen from a warehouse in Australia. (News source.)

An official function in Malaysia has turned into a scandal as illegal sea turtle eggs were served. (News source.)

Lizard Smugglers Caught

Hong Kong Marine Police caught smugglers with 119 lizards. (News source.)

Herp Crimes

A man tried to smuggle 44 lizards and snakes (including an albino carpet python) out of Australia. (News source.)

An Indian man was caught with over 100 smuggled tortoise skins. (News source.)

Turtle Issues

South Carolina is looking into legislation to protect the native turtle population from being shipped by the thousands overseas. (News source.)

A Pacific sea turtle database is being brought online. (News source.)

3000 tortoises were confiscated by Indian officials, when they were discovered being smuggled out of Uttar Pradesh. (News source.)

Customs officers at Atlanta's airport seized illegal (CITES) turtle meat and eggs from a passenger. Species not mentioned, but perhaps sea turtle? (News source.)

Malayan Box Turtles Endangered by Smuggling

Illegal export of Malayan box turtles continue to threaten their natural populations. (News source.)

Poached Monitors Seized

Malaysian authorities confiscated 600 clouded monitor lizards being smuggled out of the country. (News source.)

Herp Smuggler Sentenced

A 29-year old South African man was sentenced to a year in jail in Madagascar for trying to smuggle out hundreds of small reptiles and amphibians in his coat and luggage. (News source.)

Poached Reptiles Seized

Malaysian officers confiscated 1,272 live reptiles destined for the illegal food market. (News source.)

Herp Conservation News

Weather conditions this year were beneficial for the successful breeding of the endangered Mississippi gopher frog. (News source.)

Thailand wildlife officers seized 200 monitor lizards being smuggled out to the illegal food markets. (News source.)

North Carolina bought 40 acres to preserve as bog turtle habitat. (News source.)

Smugglers Caught

Malaysian officials confiscated 3000 turtle eggs being smuggled into the country. (News source.)

Smuggling into Australia

Five baby pythons (at least one was a green tree python, based on photograph) and a couple of South American tarantulas were confiscated and killed by Australian customs when an American tried to ship them in as "toys and shirts." (News source.)

Smuggler Arrest

Three Japanese men were arrested in Australia for trying to smuggle out a couple of lizards. (News source.)

Tortoise Crime

A British national was caught illegally possessing two tortoises in Cameroon. (News source.)

Smugglers Caught

Kenya authorities caught two men trying to smuggle 113 live snakes to Japan. (News source.)

Turtle News

Indian star tortoises continue to be a prime target for smugglers. (News source.)

Politicians and scientists are arguing over the best plan for the eastern spiny soft-shell turtle in Lake Champlain. (News source.)

Smugglers Intercepted

2 tons of live snakes and 770 kg of tortoises were intercepted in Vietnam before they could be taken into China. (News source.)

Turtle Eggs Poached

Brunei officials seized 2900 turtle eggs poached and smuggled in from another country. (News source.)

Thai Smuggling

Two wildlife smugglers were caught in Thailand trying to ship out over 1,000 snakes and tortoises to China, Taiwan, and Vietnam. (News source.)

Turtle Egg Smuggling

Brunei Customs confiscated 8500 turtle eggs that were being smuggled into the country. (News source.)

Smuggling INTO Indonesia

Most smuggling of snakes involving the US means the reptiles are heading into the country, but a package of six boas was confiscated when it was sent to Indonesia. The boas included several high-dollar morphs. The smuggling was wrong, no doubt, but whoever (the wildlife officers or the newspaper) is saying the animals are "endangered" clearly has no clue. (News source.)

Chelonian News

168 smuggled tortoises were seized by police in Bihar, India. (News source.)

16 sea turtles were rehabilitated and released here.

Fighting Egg Smuggling

Malaysian Customs in Sabah are increasing efforts to fight sea turtle egg smugglers. 1,500 eggs were confiscated this month. (News source.)

Tortoise Smugglers Caught

Five tortoise smugglers were captured in a police raid in Uttar Pradesh, India. (News source.)

Gecko Smuggling Attempt

Australian officials confiscated a package of geckos that was being sent to the Czech Republic. (News source.)

Vietnam Smuggling

Vietnam officials intercepted a ton of live monitor lizards headed for China. (News source.)

Black Market Tortoises

Here is an article on a black market in Bangkok with very rare tortoises.

Smuggler Sentenced

A Mexican man was sentenced to 16 months in prison and 3 years supervised release by a US federal court for smuggling sea turtle products. (News source.)

Lizard Smuggling

3000 chameleons and 350 other lizards were confiscated from two men at a Yemen airport. (News source.)

Snake Smuggler Fined

An Australian man was fined $15,000 for attempting to take 10 cornsnakes and two Burmese pythons through an airport. The snakes, of course, were destroyed. (They couldn't take $100 of the fine and send the snakes back out of country?) (News source.)

Smuggled in Books

A couple of packages intercepted in the mail from Australia to the Czech Republic turned out to hold hollowed-out books with native Australian geckos. (News source.)

Smuggling Beardies

A Dutch passenger was caught trying to smuggle 16 small bearded dragons through an airport in Spain. No word on where they came from. (News source.)

Herp Crimes

The UK mastermind of an illegal tortoise smuggling ring has been charged. (News source.)

A couple of snakes were stolen from Flamingo Gardens in Florida. (News source.)

A woman who stole a young boa constrictor from a Michigan pet shop has returned the snake. (News source.)

Python Smuggling

A Victoria, Australia, man is charged with smuggling four "endangered" pythons in from South Africa. (The news report states they are believed to be green tree pythons -- which aren't native to South Africa.) And, of course, the idiots in customs there plan to destroy the snakes. (News source.)

Tortoise Smuggling

A crate of 9 tortoises were confiscated in Israel, apparently having been smuggled in (possibly just a waystop on their way elsewhere). (News source.)

Venom Smuggling

Bangladesh officers arrested four traders with 12 lbs of cobra venom. It appeared to have been smuggled into the area. The traders were trying to sell it locally. (News source.)

Smugglers and Poachers

Pakistani wildlife officers found a partially skinned crocodile (protected) along a road in DHA. It was uncertain whether the reptile had been hunted in the wild or stolen from a breeding center. (News source.)

Two tortoise smugglers were shot and killed, three others got away, in an encounter with police in India. (News source.)

Madagascar Tortoise Smuggling

Here's a BBC News article on the capture of a Nigerian smuggler who was found with 300 tortoises from Madagascar, and a general review of the problem.

Smuggler Indicted

A Chico, CA, man and an unknown conspirator in Singapore have been indicted in federal court for trafficking in smuggled tortoises. (News source.)

Sea Turtle Smuggler in Court

A Chinese national pleaded guilty in US Federal Court to smuggling hawksbill sea turtle shells (and items made from the shells). (News source.)

Tortoise Smuggling

657 star tortoises were discovered being smuggled through Chennai airport. (News source.)

Croc News

The Madras Crocodile Bank Trust has hatched six Cuvier's dwarf caiman, the first time for that species in South Asia. (News source.)

The Taiwanese veterinarian who lost his arm to a crocodile has had it reattached. (News source.)

A Russian crocodile smuggler was caught red-handed at the Cairo International Airport with baby crocs, turtles, and lizards. He was deported, and the animals confiscated. (News source.)

Smuggling to Ireland

A package of various common pet-store arachnids and herps from a US pet shop was confiscated by Irish customs. The package was labeled "aquatic plants." (News source.)

Tortoise Product Smugglers

Punjab, Pakistan, wildlife officials confiscated 26 cartons of smuggled tortoise meat and 5 bags of shells. (News source.)

Smuggler Pleads Guilty

A San Francisco pet shop owner has plead guilty to smuggling baby Fly River turtles from Australia. (News source.)

Smuggled Reptiles

6 Bangledeshi nationals were arrested for possession (on the wrong side of the India border, it looks like) of 10 endangered reptiles: king cobras and elongated tortoises. (News source.)

Hong Kong Herp Crimes

First, two men and a woman were arrested for selling mislabeled crocodile meat, punishable by up to 5 years in jail and a $500,000 fine. Monitor lizard and snake meat is often sold as crocodile meat. (News source.)

A smuggler was caught bringing in 15 snakes and 22 lizards from Indonesia, mostly baby pythons and monitors. (News source.)

Tortoise Smuggler

A Tampa, FL, pet shop owner pleaded guilty to charges in a smuggling racket involving Burmese and Indian star tortoises. (News source.)

Smuggler Pleads Guilty

A Southern California man is pleading guilty to smuggling rare Asian chelonians into the country. (News source)

Singapore vs Smuggling

Singapore officers are being trained to identify rare reptiles, in an effort to stop the black market trade through that country. (News source.)

Fiji Smuggling

A California man was charged with smuggling endangered Fiji iguanas inside his prosthetic leg. (News source.)

India: Frog Smugglers

3000 frogs were recovered from an Assam smuggling operation. Other wildlife are also in peril from rising smuggling threats. (News source.)

Chinese Turtle Smuggling

Hong Kong police caught two men trying to smuggle 7000 hatchling turtles into China. The species named were North American, none endangered. (News source.)

Judge Halts Guilty Plea

A Federal judge has halted a guilty plea by a turtle smuggler, on the grounds that the Alabama district court may not have jurisdiction, as the man never left Louisiana. (News source.)

Turtle Smuggler

A Florida man has pled guilty to smuggling protected Alabama redbelly turtles into Mississippi. (News source.)

Saudi Smuggler Caught

A 22-year-old Saudi university student was caught trying to smuggle small reptiles, including chameleons, cobras, and baby crocodiles out of Egypt. (News source.)

Malaysian Smuggled Turtle Eggs

A Malaysian was caught smuggling 1,498 turtle eggs into Borneo. No species given. (News source.)

Smuggling Charges

Three people from Louisiana and Florida plead not guilty to charges of smuggling rare turtles. (News source.)

Smuggled Star Tortoises

Malaysia has a loophole in its wildlife laws, apparently, which allows star tortoises, smuggled in from India, to be sold in pet stores. The stores claim they are captive-bred; this is disputed by wildlife officials, but without proof they can't confiscate. (News source.)

Tortoise Smuggling

A shipment of "clay pots" from Tanzania to Malaysia turned out to be 76 baby leopard tortoises. The smuggled reptiles have been confiscated and are awaiting probable return to Africa. (News source.)

Australia Kills Smuggled Reptiles

Packages of garden gnomes and pottery hiding live snakes and lizards have been intercepted by Australian customs. The smuggled reptiles came from Britain. All were killed due to "quarantine." (News source.)

Turkish Tortoise Smuggling

Turkish police caught a foreign citizen attempting to smuggle 8 endangered tortoises (species unnamed) out of the country. (News source.)

Snakes Confiscated in Israel

Someone apparently tried to smuggle some African reptiles and invertebrates (including a number of venomous snakes) to a zoo in the country of Georgia. Israeli customs agents confiscated them at the Ben Gurion International Airport. (News source.)

Smuggled Tortoises Intercepted

India's Border Security Force intercepted a group of elongated tortoises being smuggled from Bangladesh into India. They were found in a sack hanging under a bridge. (News source.)

Snakes Smuggled into South Africa

South Africa's environmental management inspectors (the Green Scorpions) confiscated a shipment of 13 venomous snakes from the Czech Republic. The snakes were smuggled inside video cassettes. The species noted aren't particularly uncommon in captivity: "three albino monocle cobras, found in southern Asia, three Arabian or Palestinian saw-scaled vipers, two Nubian spitting cobras and two taipans." The taipans were a PNG subspecies. Investigation is ongoing. (News source.)

Snake Smuggling

Custom officials at Cairo, Egypt, stopped a man who was trying to smuggle about 700 live snakes into Saudi Arabia as pets and store displays. Species aren't noted, except to state that two were cobras. (News source.)