The cat came out of the bag.
A Brooklyn man was arrested for selling a stuffed cougar head and other exotic animal parts to an undercover police officer, authorities said, violating wildlife protection laws.
Asher Weiss, 26, pleaded guilty Thursday to selling lynx noggins for $900 in the basement of a Borough Park building on the night of Nov. 2, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said.
During the wild transaction, Weiss offered the cheetah’s head to a police officer for $10,000, then sold it a second time on Dec. 5, along with a stuffed bird and a seal, prosecutors said. .
After his arrest, Weiss coughed up several other illegal animal parts he had purchased online, including an elephant foot, a full crocodile, and a tiger skin.
“We are committed to stopping illegal wildlife trade in our communities, and by prosecuting cases like this we are not just enforcing the law, we are protecting endangered species from harm. It sends a strong message that this is a priority,” Gonzalez said. said in a press release.
Authorities say Weiss, a Borough Park resident, bought the strange trophy on websites like Craigslist and OfferUp. He turned them over to the New York State Department of Environmental Protection in April.
Under the terms of his plea agreement, Weiss was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and surrender additional animal parts.
On Thursday, he pleaded guilty to violating the state’s environmental protection law before Judge Dale Von Frederick in Brooklyn Criminal Court.
