A Hong Kong man was indicted by a federal grand jury on Friday on charges of smuggling eastern box turtles, a protected wildlife species, from the United States to China for the black market.
The Ministry of Justice announced that Hong Kong resident Sai Kun-ting, 53, has been charged with four counts of exporting goods in violation of the law.
Mr. Ting, who was indicted on Friday, was arrested on February 25 at New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport.
According to the indictment, Ting knowingly and illegally facilitated the export of 40 eastern box turtles from the United States to Hong Kong in June 2023.
Red panda found in suspected smuggler’s luggage at Thai airport
Sai Kun-ting from Hong Kong is said to have sent a box turtle wrapped in a sock to China from the United States in his luggage. (USFWS)
According to court documents, a box containing the turtle and addressed to the alias “Gee Yearlong” believed to be used by Ting was intercepted at an international postal facility in Torrance, California.
Ting is accused of falsely labeling the packages as almond and chocolate cake to anger inspectors.
Three of the boxes allegedly contained up to 12 live turtles tied to socks, and the fourth box contained seven live turtles and one dead turtle. It is said that he was
The agency also claims that the senders of each package were fake.
SC man who smuggled rescued turtles to and from us convicted in Hong Kong, charged with animal cruelty in Georgia
Sai Kun-ting from Hong Kong is said to have sent a box turtle wrapped in a sock to China from the United States in his luggage. (USFWS)
The eastern box turtle is a subspecies of the box turtle found in forested areas of the eastern United States, with isolated populations in the Midwest.
According to the Justice Department, turtles with colorful markings are highly prized in the black pet trade overseas, especially in places like Hong Kong and China.
However, the eastern box turtle is protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The Convention is an international agreement established to protect fish, wildlife, and plants that are at risk of becoming extinct or endangered.
China and the United States are both parties to the agreement.
Florida Fish and Wildlife illegally trades cobras, pit vipers and other venomous snakes
A sign outside the U.S. Department of Justice headquarters in Washington, D.C. (Ting Sheng/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The affidavit filed with the criminal complaint against Ting includes allegations that Ting was an associate of Kang Juntao of Hangzhou, China. Juntao is a convicted felon and international turtle smuggler who recruited turtle poachers and suppliers in the United States to help transport turtles to intermediaries. The intermediary will bundle the turtle with other shipments and send it to Hong Kong.
The Justice Department claims the turtles were tied with socks not only to keep them immobile and unable to alert authorities to their presence, but also to protect their shells.
From June 2017 to December 2018, Kang was responsible for transporting at least 1,500 turtles from the United States to Hong Kong. The total value of the turtles was estimated at more than $2.25 million.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
In March 2019, after being extradited from Malaysia, Kang pleaded guilty to money laundering and was sentenced to 38 months in federal prison.
Despite Kang’s conviction, federal authorities continue to intercept packages sent to Ting and others.
If Ting is convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison for each smuggling charge.
