A man attempting to illegally transport 299 reptiles was detained at Mexico City International Airport (AICM) before boarding an international flight to Japan.
The arrest occurred on May 19 while he was checking in two suitcases containing the protected wildlife species.
The man, named Gustavo “N,” did not have documentation proving the legal origin of the specimens, nor did he have authorization for their export from the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat).
Therefore, the specimens were seized as a precautionary measure, and the alleged perpetrator was brought before the federal public prosecutor’s office.
“The alleged perpetrator was brought before the Attorney General’s Office (FGR), which has already filed an investigation and is assisting Profepa (Profepa) in the prosecution of the offenses provided for and punished in Article 420, Sections IV and V of the Federal Penal Code.”
In a statement issued this Friday, May 23, the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (Profepa) reported that the detained individual is a Mexican citizen with multiple records of international trafficking.
This led to his arrest in the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador, for the attempted illegal export of marine and land iguanas; and in New Zealand, for the attempted illegal export of various species of endemic and endangered geckos.
These are the specimens he was attempting to export.
In the document, Profepa detailed that the specimens being attempted to be illegally exported are: tree scorpion, false chameleon, Alicante lizard, turipache, lemacto, false coral snake, tiger snake, basilisk, and xenosaurus.
It indicated that the wildlife specimens were evaluated, and it was found that some of them were in poor physical condition due to the “terrible conditions in which they are transported as part of illegal trafficking.”
Therefore, they were protected and transferred to a care center coordinated by Semarnat, where they are provided medical care for temporary safekeeping.
The illegal export of any wildlife specimen is punishable under Article 420, Sections IV and V of the Federal Penal Code:
“Regarding the capture, possession, transportation, collection, import, or export for the purpose of trafficking any wildlife specimen, product, or byproduct, regulated by an international treaty to which Mexico is a party, and the damage caused to the biological viability of a wildlife species or population, crimes that merit a penalty of between one and nine years in prison and a fine of between three hundred and three thousand days.”
Source: infobae
