Florida Wildlife expedition makes stop at National Guard training post

By Air National Guard Master Sgt. Thomas Kielbasa

Florida National Guard

STARKE, Fla. (4/10/12) – A thousand-mile, 100-day expedition stopped at the National Guard's training post in North Florida recently, emphasizing the importance of the military site as a wildlife habitat.

Four trekkers from the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition visited Camp Blanding Joint Training Center, April 8 to 9, where they met with members of the Florida National Guard and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to discuss the natural habitats at the post.

The expedition, which began Jan. 17, seeks to raise awareness for wildlife corridors in Florida by hiking, biking and paddling through natural lands from the Everglades to the Georgia border.

The team visiting Camp Blanding included a biologist, a conservationist, a photographer, and a videographer.

According to expedition biologist Joe Guthrie, the 72,000-acre military post is an important stopping point for wildlife along the greenway between the Ocala and Osceola National Forests.

"Camp Blanding is a major hub in the corridor that the State and (FWC) are trying to understand – especially when it comes to the Black Bear," Guthrie said.

Guthrie and the team met with Land Component Commander Army Brig. Gen. Richard Gallant, FWC Executive Director Nick Wiley, and other officials during their visit to Camp Blanding.

Conversation during the meeting included the increasing population of bears on the post, the importance of buffer zones between the post and nearby civilian homes, and the amount of military training in the area.

"This is tremendously important to Camp Blanding," Gallant said of the meeting with the expedition on April 9. "This helps us protect the training lands that we have by enhancing our relationships with FWC and other organizations, and improve the training opportunities for those visiting Camp Blanding."

FWC Executive Director Wiley agreed that the expedition's stop would highlight Camp Blanding's place in the wildlife corridor in north-central Florida.

"Camp Blanding is a great example of why these lands are so important to fish and wildlife in Florida," Wiley said. "And that is really a big emphasis of their expedition across the state: to highlight the importance of these lands and how they're linked together.

 "Our fish and wildlife need linkages, they need to be connected," he said. "…without habitat linkages and corridors like this, Florida wouldn't be Florida. It wouldn't be special. One of the things that we hold dear as Floridians is our fish and wildlife."

Camp Blanding Joint Training Center is located near Starke, Fla. The training site is home to both Florida Army and Air National Guard units, and is an ideal training area for military units because of its varied topography-planted pine plantations, swamps, oak hammocks, desert-like terrain-with minimal environmental restrictions. It is also home to many native wildlife species.

Norman Clinton Hale Sentenced for Killing U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement Officer

Michael J. Moore, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, announces that Norman Clinton Hale, age 42, a resident of McDonough, Georgia, was sentenced on March 22, 2012 before the Honorable Marc T. Treadwell, United States District Judge in Macon, Georgia, after entering a plea of guilty to counts one, three, and five of the indictment.

Count one charged Hale with killing Christopher Upton, a U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement Officer, with a Remington 700 .223 caliber bolt action rifle by discharging the firearm while illegally hunting on a federal reserve, the Ocmulgee Bluff Equestrian Trailhead in the Oconee National Forest, in violation of Title 18 United States Code, Sections 1114 in connection with Title 18 United States Code, Section 1112(a) and (b) and Title 18, United States Code, Section 2.

Count three charged Hale with discharging a firearm In a developed recreation site, in violation of 36 Code of Federal Regulations, Section 261.10(d)(1), Section 261.2, and Section 261.1b.

Count five charged Hale with tampering with a witness by misleading conduct, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1512(b)(3).

Following a sentencing hearing, the court sentenced Mr. Hale to 60 months’ imprisonment on count one, 60 months’ imprisonment on count five, and six months’ imprisonment on count three, all concurrent with each other, followed by three years’ supervised release, and a $225 mandatory assessment fee.

On March 5, 2010, while hunting illegally, Hale discharged his rifle, striking Officer Upton in the face. At the sentencing hearing, the government offered expert evidence that had Mr. Hale taken appropriate action, such as calling for emergency services and applying pressure to Officer Upton’s wound, Officer Upton could have survived. Instead, Mr. Hale waited one hour and 32 minutes before calling 911 and offered no aid to Officer Upton. Mr. Hale asked the other persons present to just leave and not report the incident. When they refused to do so, Mr. Hale then suggested they get four wheelers and drive them to where Officer Upton was and tell the police that they found Officer Upton’s body in this condition.

Based on the lack of care and assistance to Officer Upton, the government argued that the court should exercise its discretion and sentence Mr. Hale to a more severe term of imprisonment than that suggested by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines. The court agreed and sentenced Mr. Hale to a term of imprisonment that was double the maximum amount of jail time calculated under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

United States Attorney Michael Moore said, “This case involves an unimaginable tragedy. Had Mr. Hale shown even the slightest bit of care and concern for Officer Chris Upton, he would be alive today, and Mr. Hale would not be heading to federal prison.”

The investigation was conducted by the United States Forest Service, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael T. Solis.

Miami Taxidermist Sentenced for Wildlife Smuggling

WASHINGTON – Enrique Gomez De Molina, 48, of Miami Beach, Fla., was sentenced in federal court in Miami today to 20 months in prison for illegal trafficking in endangered and protected wildlife, announced Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division at the Department of Justice; Wifredo A. Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; and Luis J. Santiago, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement, Southeast Region.  De Molina was also sentenced to one year of supervised release to follow his prison term, a $6,000 fine and was ordered to forfeit all of the smuggled wildlife in his possession.

 According to documents filed with the court, the defendant attempted to import wildlife species including skins of a Java kingfisher (Halcyon cyanoventris) and a collared kingfisher (Todiramphus chloris), one mounted lesser bird of paradise (Paradisaea minor), the skin of a juvenile hawk-eagle (Spizaetus sp.), the carcass remnant of a slow loris (Nycticebus coucang) and the carcass remnant of a lesser mouse deer (Tragulus javanicus), without proper declarations when imported into the United States and without the required permits.  In some cases, commercial transactions in listed species, such as the slow loris, are not allowed at all.

 In order to protect certain species of wildlife against over-exploitation, the United States is a signatory to an international treaty known as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).  Appendix I of CITES includes species that are threatened with extinction and for which no trade is allowed for commercial purposes. Appendix II of CITES includes wildlife species which although not necessarily threatened with extinction now, may become so unless trade in specimens of such species is strictly regulated. Before importing a specimen of any animal protected under Appendix I of CITES from any foreign country, a valid foreign CITES export permit from the country of origin, or a CITES re-export certificate from a country of re-export, must be obtained as well as a valid “import permit” from the United States.  Before importing a specimen of any animal protected under Appendix II of CITES from any foreign country, a valid foreign export permit or re-export certificate must be obtained.  Federal law also prohibits the importation of fish or wildlife into the United States without proper declaration to both U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS).

 According to the allegations contained in the information and a detailed factual statement in the court record, De Molina’s illegal wildlife trafficking activities extended from late 2009 through February 2011, and included numerous species and shipments, involving contacts in Bali, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Canada and China.  The joint factual statement describes the importation into the U.S. of the parts, skins and remains of species, including a king cobra, a pangolin, hornbills, birds of paradise, and the skulls of babirusa and orangutans. Despite the interception of two shipments in late 2009 that were ultimately forfeited by De Molina and abandoned, he continued to solicit protected wildlife from his suppliers via the Internet, and to select specific animals from photographs to be provided to him.  The parts or carcasses of the wildlife he selected would then be shipped to him without the permits or declarations required by law.  Some of the endangered and protected wildlife he selected was alive at the time it was photographed, including a wooly stork, a slow loris, and a hornbill, and later sent to him dead.

After receipt, De Molina would incorporate various parts and segments of the wildlife into taxidermy pieces at a studio in downtown Miami.  He offered these pieces through galleries and on the Internet for prices ranging up to $80,000.  In December 2010, pieces constructed by De Molina were exhibited during Art Basel week at the Scope Art Fair in Miami, resulting in at least one significant sale and the subsequent illegal export of the piece to the Canada.

“Mr. De Molina trafficked in highly endangered species in violation of the law, disguising commercial exploitation of endangered species as artwork,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division.  “Today, Mr. De Molina has been held fully accountable for his illegal actions, which are prohibited by both U.S. and international law.”

“For years, DeMolina illegally imported parts and remains of endangered and threatened species, including a cobra, a pangolin, hornbills, and the skulls of babirusa and orangutans, and used them to create taxidermy pieces that he sold for as much as $80,000,” said U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer.  “Trafficking in endangered and threatened species, whether for personal profit or under the guise of art, is illegal.  Together with our law enforcement partners, we will strictly enforce the laws that protect our environment and our wildlife.”

 “This case is an excellent example of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service's commitment to investigate and interdict the commercialization of protected wildlife species,” said Luis J. Santiago, Special Agent in Charge of the FWS Office of Law Enforcement, Southeast Region. “The taxidermy work that Mr. De Molina considered artwork is nothing more than a shameful use of the world’s wildlife resources, by promoting the illegal take, and trafficking of protected species.”

 Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FWS, which brought the investigation to a successful conclusion.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Watts-FitzGerald and Trial Attorney Shennie Patel with the Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Former Ohio Wildlife Officer Convicted of Trafficking in White-Tailed Deer

WASHINGTON – Allan Wright, 45, of Russellville, Ohio, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Cincinnati to violating the Lacey Act by trafficking in and making false records for illegally harvested white-tailed deer, the Department of Justice announced.   Wright committed the Lacey Act crimes while he was employed as a wildlife officer for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.   Wright’s employment as a wildlife officer was terminated after he was indicted in August 2011.   As part of his plea agreement, Wright has agreed not to appeal his termination.

Among other things, t he Lacey Act makes it a crime for a person to knowingly transport or sell wildlife in interstate commerce when the wildlife was taken or possessed in violation of state law.   The Lacey Act also makes it a crime for a person to knowingly make or submit a false record, account or label for wildlife that has been transported in interstate commerce.   Wright pleaded guilty to a total of four Lacey Act crimes based on his conduct between 2006 and 2010.  

As part his plea, Wright admitted that, using his authority as a wildlife officer, he sold a resident Ohio hunting license to a non-resident hunter in 2006.   That hunter used the illegal Ohio resident hunting license to kill three white-tailed deer.   As part of his plea, Wright admitted that he “checked in” those deer by providing a false Ohio residence address for the non-resident hunter in order to make it appear that the deer were killed by an Ohio resident.   After the deer were checked in, the non-resident hunter transported them in interstate commerce from Ohio to South Carolina.

Also as part of his plea, Wright admitted that, using his authority as a wildlife officer, he seized white-tailed deer antlers from a hunter who had killed a deer illegally in 2009.   Wright admitted that, rather than disposing of the antlers through court proceedings, as required by Ohio law, he knowingly supplied them to another individual who transported them from Ohio to Michigan.   As part of his plea, Wright admitted that he filed an official state form, which falsely reported that he had personally destroyed those antlers.  

Wright faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine per count.   A date has not yet been set for Wright’s sentencing.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement.   This case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney James B. Nelson of the Department of Justice’s Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division.

Federal Officials Announce Nationwide Crackdown on Black Market Rhino Trade

WASHINGTON – Seven people have been arrested on charges of trafficking in endangered black rhinoceros horn over the past week in Los Angeles, Newark, N.J., and New York, the Department of Justice and Department of the Interior today announced.  Special agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) made the arrests and have executed search warrants in five different states as part of “Operation Crash,” a multi-agency effort to investigate and prosecute those involved in the black market trade of endangered rhinoceros horn.

In Los Angeles, Jin Zhao Feng, a Chinese national who allegedly oversaw the shipment of at least dozens of rhino horns from the United States to China, was arrested last night.   Last weekend, members of an alleged U.S.-based trafficking ring that supplied rhino horns to Feng were arrested after being charged with conspiracy and violations of the Lacey Act and the Endangered Species Act for purchasing rhino horns from various suppliers in the U.S.  Charges were filed against Jimmy Kha, the owner of Win Lee Corporation; his son Felix Kha; and Mai Nguyen, the owner of a nail salon where packages containing rhinoceros horns were being mailed.  One of the alleged suppliers, Wade Steffen, was arrested in Hico, Texas, and charged in Los Angeles.  According to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, the Khas began receiving packages from Steffen and another supplier in 2010.  Seventeen packages were opened under federal search warrants and 37 rhinoceros horns were found.

A search of Steffen’s luggage at the Long Beach Airport in California on Feb. 9, 2012, turned up $337,000 in cash. In additional searches conducted by FWS and ICE, agents found rhinoceros horns, cash, bars of gold, diamonds and Rolex watches.   Approximately $1 million in cash was seized and another $1 million seized in gold ingots.

“The rhino is an animal of prehistoric origin that is facing possible extinction because of an illegal trade for its horns on the black market that is driven by greed,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice.  “The rhino is protected under both U.S. and international law, and we are taking aggressive action to protect the rhino by investigating and vigorously prosecuting those who are engaged in this brutal trade.”    

In New Jersey, Amir Even-Ezra was arrested Saturday, Feb. 18, 2012, on a felony trafficking charge in violation of the Lacey Act after purchasing rhino horns from an individual from New York at a service station off of the New Jersey Turnpike.   Even-Ezra allegedly brought a scale for weighing the horns and envelopes of cash to the meeting, which was brokered by an individual outside of the United States.

In U.S. District Court in Manhattan, antiques expert David Hausman was also charged with illegally trafficking rhinoceros horns and with creating false documents to conceal the illegal nature of the transaction, both in violation of the Lacey Act.  Hausman allegedly purchased a black rhinoceros mount (a taxidermied head of a rhinoceros) from an undercover officer in Illinois and was later observed sawing off the horns in a motel parking lot.  Rhino horns were found in a search conducted on Saturday, Feb. 18, 2012, following his arrest.

“Rhino horn traffickers continue to fuel the illegal demand for horn, demand that has led to hundreds of rhino deaths and put the white and black rhino in danger of extinction in the wild,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe.  “These arrests have dealt a serious blow to rhino horn smuggling, but represent only the beginning of a significant crackdown on this illegal trade.”

“The illegal trade in endangered wildlife robs the world of these magnificent creatures in their natural habitat,” said ICE Director John Morton.  “This case is a reflection of our commitment to ensuring that our children and grandchildren are not deprived by criminals whose only goal is to make a quick buck at the expense of these innocent creatures.”

Rhinoceros are an herbivore species of prehistoric origin and one of the largest remaining mega-fauna on earth.   All species of rhinoceros are protected under U.S. and international law.   All black rhinoceros species are endangered.   Rhino horns are composed of keratin, the same type of protein that makes up hair and fingernails.   Rhinoceros horn is a highly valued and sought-after commodity despite the fact that international trade has been largely banned since 1976.   The demand for rhinoceros horn, which is used by some cultures for ornamental carvings, good luck charms or alleged medicinal purposes, has resulted in a thriving black market – a market that has escalated in recent years in both volume and per-unit profit.

  If convicted, maximum penalties under these charges are up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for conspiracy; five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for Lacey Act violations; and up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine for violations of the Endangered Species Act.

Operation Crash (a “crash” is the term for a herd of rhinoceros) is a continuing investigation by the Department of Justice and the Department of the Interior FWS, with assistance from other federal and local law enforcement agencies including ICE and the Internal Revenue Service.   The investigation is being led by the Special Investigations Unit of the FWS Office of Law Enforcement and involves a task force of agents focused on rhino trafficking.

A criminal complaint is a charge based on probable cause allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until convicted.

The criminal prosecution is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri.

Alabama Man Pleads Guilty to Selling Anhinga Feathers

WASHINGTON – Alexander D. Alvarez of Atmore, Ala., pleaded guilty in federal court today to violating the Lacey Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) for illegally selling and possessing the feathers of anhingas and other migratory birds protected under the MBTA, the Department of Justice Environment and Natural Resources Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama announced.  

Alvarez was charged by criminal information on Feb. 1, 2012, with one felony Lacey Act violation, one felony MBTA violation and one misdemeanor MBTA violation.   The Lacey Act charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.   The felony MBTA charge carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a fine of $250,000.   The misdemeanor MBTA charge carries a maximum penalty of six months in prison and a fine of $15,000.   Sentencing is scheduled for May 22, 2012.  

Under the MBTA, the Secretary of the Interior maintains a list of migratory birds which are protected from, among other things, being killed, sold, bartered, transported or possessed, except as otherwise permitted by federal regulation.   Enrolled members of federally-recognized American Indian tribes may possess eagle and other migratory bird feathers and parts for religious and ceremonial purposes, but federal law strictly prohibits the sale of migratory birds, feathers or their parts by any person.   Alvarez is not an enrolled member of a federally-recognized American Indian tribe.   The Lacey Act prohibits, among other things, the sale of wildlife knowing that the wildlife was taken or possessed in violation of any federal wildlife-related regulation or law.     

 “Mr. Alvarez sought to profit from selling protected bird feathers he had no legal right to possess,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice.   “Federal law prohibits the sale of migratory birds, feathers or their parts for commercial gain.   In enforcing these wildlife laws in partnership with tribal law enforcement, we share a duty to protect the nation’s scarce and precious wildlife resources.   In protecting these resources for future generations, we also ensure the ability of federally recognized tribal members to possess eagle and migratory bird feathers for religious and ceremonial practices.”

 “Protecting our natural resources, particularly wildlife, from being exploited against the law for personal gain continues to be a significant function of the Department of Justice,” said Kenyen R. Brown, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama.  “Successful prosecutions of this nature help ensure that the next generation of Americans enjoy the same level of wildlife that we do today.”

According to court documents, Alvarez communicated via email with an individual in Louisiana and eventually exchanged two anhinga tails that Alvarez possessed for a crested caracara tail, a Harris’s hawk tail and $400, which the individual possessed.   Alvarez later sent 14 sets of anhinga tail feathers to this individual and asked the individual to photograph and offer the tails for sale via email.   Alvarez received payment from the Louisiana individual for the anhinga tail feathers that were sold.   A federal search warrant was executed at Alvarez’s home on March 11, 2009, and feathers from several migratory bird species were seized.  

This case resulted from an investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement into the illegal commercialization of eagles and other migratory birds protected by federal law.   The investigation was jointly conducted with the Navajo Nation Department of Fish and Wildlife.   The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama and the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, Environmental Crimes Section.

CBP Specialists at Laredo Port of Entry Intercept 23 Live Ticks Found on Deer Hide

Laredo, Texas - U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agriculture specialists at the Laredo Port of Entry recently intercepted a significant amount of possible cattle fever ticks found on an imported trophy deer hide.

On Jan. 8, 2012 a CBP officer at Colombia-Solidarity Bridge referred a driver of a Chevy pickup truck to secondary examination after he declared a trophy deer hide originating from Nuevo Leon, Mexico. A CBP agriculture specialist conducted an examination and discovered 23 live ticks on the hide.

A U.S. Department of Agriculture entomologist identified the pest as Boophilus sp., which includes cattle fever tick, a pest of quarantine significance in cattle.

CBP refused entry of the hide. The hunter abandoned the hide for destruction.

Imported trophy deer hides must be free of live or dead ticks. Hides must be treated chemically or be frozen to ensure elimination of these pests.

 “This is the largest amount of fever ticks that our agriculture specialists have found on a single deer hide this season,” said Sidney Aki, CBP Port Director, Laredo. “Stopping fever ticks at the border illustrates the crucial role CBP agriculture specialists play in protecting American agriculture and livestock and preventing possible adverse impact to the U.S. cattle industry.”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.