Smuggled turtles were labeled as toys. Now, a man pleads guilty.

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3 days ago

A New York man pleaded guilty to smuggling turtles worth approximately $1.4 million to Hong Kong, along with venomous snakes and other reptiles.
Wei Qiang Lin of Brooklyn pleaded guilty to "falsely labeling live turtles as fake toys" and "exporting them in delivery boxes on a weeks-long journey to Hong Kong," the Department of Justice said in an Aug. 11 news release.
Lin exported approximately 222 parcels containing around 850 turtles valued at $1.4 million between August 2023 and November 2024, according to court records. He labeled the boxes as containing "plastic animal toys," among other objects, the news release said. Lin is also accused of exporting "11 other parcels filled with reptiles including venomous snakes."
Turtles were hidden in socks
Law enforcement found the turtles "bound and taped inside knotted socks" in the shipping boxes during a border inspection. Packing them this way restricts their movement, so they can pass undetected.
According to the news release, "Lin primarily shipped eastern box turtles and three-toed box turtles, native U.S. species which feature colorful markings — a prized feature in the domestic and foreign pet market, particularly in China and Hong Kong."
Both turtle species are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), according to the DOJ, after tens of thousands of box turtles were illegally exported every year during the 1990s. China and the United States are both parties to CITES.
Lin is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 23.
"He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the gain or loss from the illegal activity," the news release said, adding Lin also "agreed to abandon any property interest in the reptiles seized during the investigation," as part of his plea.
In March, a Chinese citizen named Sai Keung Tin was sentenced to 30 months in prison for smuggling more than 2,000 turtles from the United States to Hong Kong over about five years, federal prosecutors said. Wildlife inspectors had seized the packages, falsely labeled as containing almonds and chocolate cookies, at an international mail facility in Torrance, California, USA TODAY previously reported.
Multiple federal and local law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Customs and Border Protection, investigated the case, the news release said.
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What are eastern box turtles?
Eastern box turtles, a subspecies of common box turtle, are native to forest regions in the eastern United States, and they make up some isolated populations in the Midwest, according to U.S. Fish and Wildlife.
While the eastern box turtle is not considered an endangered species nationally, some states — including Michigan, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut — have listed it as a species of special concern, according to the National Wildlife Federation. The species is considered endangered in Maine.
The National Wildlife Federation said several factors, such as habitat loss, traffic incidents and pet trade, have contributed to the species' decline.
Latest wildlife smuggling incident
People have also been caught sneaking live turtles through security at international airports across the country.
In April, Transportation Security Administration officials in Florida intercepted a woman trying to sneak two turtles past the security checkpoint at Miami International Airport by stuffing them in her bra, the agency said in a July 24 LinkedIn post. While one of the turtles did not survive the ordeal, the other was confiscated and turned over to the Florida Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Earlier in March, a Pennsylvania man attempted to sneak a live red-ear slider turtle in the crotch area of his pants at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
The man, who was not identified by name, triggered an alarm while doing a body scan on March 7, according to TSA. He then pulled out a live turtle wrapped in a towel out of his pants.
"Wildlife trafficking is the fourth largest organized crime in the world, after drug trafficking, counterfeiting, and human trafficking," according to the Department of Homeland Security.
Contributing: Thao Nguyen, Amaris Encinas, Julia Gomez, and Max Augugliaro, USA TODAY
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [e-mail] and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chinese national Wei Qiang Lin pleads guilty to smuggling turtles