$18000 fine for smuggling live animals

[Frogger]

This private collector was recently fined $18000 for smuggling in protected turtles from the US to make an example to would be copy cats.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/turtle-smuggler-fined-endangered-species-1.5160639

So ask yourself the next time you try to bring hard corals back from the US if it is worth it.

[scilover]

How did you put all together 19 live baby turtles in a bag??Diamondback terrapins are considered as endangered animals.

Most of them got killed because of traps in fishing gear and some are run over by cars. Some people also believe that they are a good medicine!

Hopefully, governments will take initiatives to protect this endangered species.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/yOwXwCjVGuUec61lOk2xWnL0YiHDfFQnky5El_R5JsOJorGCQX _Ct8dsMyc8ouH9w37STgBXgySFKDQRAEW7a3iwFlAA8SgmU1FN QhxLB2fvghvPrCvbEqkMAPg

[Ryan]

I dont think you can compare endangered turtles to aquaculture corals. Not saying that it's right or anyone should do it, be cause I am not, but they arent even on the same playing field.

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

I wouldn’t want to get caught with smuggled corals. I brought some back in the past. In fact, a whole box of SPS colonies but I declared them (I had no idea it was illegal at the time). After hours of waiting at the border they let me go through with them and told me it’s on my record and to never do it again. The guy was actually very interested in the corals.

I’m sure I could try this a hundred more times and it would never work again.

The worst part of all of it was that they wouldn’t let me use the washroom while I waited....

[smokinreefer]

Yes, aquacultured corals are not the same as endangered turtles,
But
Illegal is illegal.

Just sayin

[Millepora_Maniac]

These blanket rules are so lazy IMO, just ban everything regardless? its not helping anyone. If the corals have paperwork, they should be allowed to pass. how is it ok to bring so much other shite across the border? give us some paper work to fill out... we will happily do it as hobbyists. These kinds of rules are like the covid closures, boat launches and all that closed, but go to walmart and walk the isles amongst hundreds of people? Broken systems made by lazy politicians.

[Dearth]

I remember a few years ago CBSA in Vancouver broke up a smuggling ring where Asian families would be used to smuggle everything from exotic birds to fish to corals and everything else in between.

Only reason why I remember it this one family used their baby to smuggle in exotic fresh water fish that were hidden within the bedding of the babies carrier. Ended up they had several thousand dollars of smuggled exotics buried in their luggage and the ensuing investigation found an in-depth smuggling operation that the CBSA and RCMP and Chinese authorities broke up and several arrests were made. The family that was caught received everything from fines to jail time.