Miami: Smuggler Wildlife who is convicted which is still operating as a leading buyer and reptile seller has been accused of illegal federal prosecutors to smuggle florida turtles to China, Japan and other places.
Michael Van Nostrand, his company, Strictly Reptile Inc.
Davie, Florida, established a “collector” network that searched Wilds Florida for certain freshwater turtles specimens, including three-stripe mud turtles, the US lawyer office said in a news release.
Collectors and Van Nostrand then mistakenly call turtles because they have been raised in captivity, rather than being arrested in the wild, according to court documents.
Van Nostrand, 54, made his first appearance at the Federal Magistrate Court in Miami on Tuesday in the case of tortoise smuggling, which was investigated by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
He was charged with conspiring with other people to pass illegal wildlife and face up to five years in prison a fine of at least $ 250,000 if punished.
His company faces a minimum fine of $ 500,000.
Florida banned the commercial catches of turtles in 2009.
In Asia turtles used for meat, as ingredients in traditional medicine and as pets, South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported.
Van Nostrand rejected comments on the newspaper.
The name of the lawyer who can speak for his name is not immediately known.
Van Nostrand gained fame through “The Lizard King”, the 2008 best-selling book that described the long investigation of the fish business and wildlife this year.
He was finally sentenced to eight months in prison in 1998 for buying Argentine Boas who was smuggled, the lizard of Tegu and other protected wildlife, and was required to pay $ 250,000 to the World Wildlife World.