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Dace

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Russo was arrested in September and is out on a promise to appear in court. His lawyer Jonathan Marvinny could not be reached for comment Friday.Russo is to be sentenced July 12, when he faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.

There definitely going to make an example out of him. I'd be worried if i was him.
 

Dace

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Here is something else they accuse him of.

"Russo also is accused of reaching out to an Australian supplier in March 2010 and asking for a false invoice for a shipment of fish and invertebrates so he could mislead officials about the value of an import, under-reporting it by hundreds of dollars. That company was not named in the affidavit."

http://www.lohud.com/article/201210...ck-man-accused-smuggling-live-coral-into-U-S-
 

bizzarro

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Here is something else they accuse him of.

"Russo also is accused of reaching out to an Australian supplier in March 2010 and asking for a false invoice for a shipment of fish and invertebrates so he could mislead officials about the value of an import, under-reporting it by hundreds of dollars. That company was not named in the affidavit."

http://www.lohud.com/article/201210...ck-man-accused-smuggling-live-coral-into-U-S-

Hefty fines would be sufficient.

Is it worth all the cost we spent to prosecute for hundreds of dollars?!
 

skene

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I'm sure the same does not happen in a place like california where things just end up being as lax where the market is more saturated and thousands of more corals come through LAX. If they are going to try and set an example... they should just do it across the board.
Do you really think that something like this is an isolated incident...? Really c'mon now.
 
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When compared to other crimes, It does sound harsh. The truth is this, don't do anything illegal. Like mentioned, he's not the first or the last. I can only guess that this was not his first time. He and anyone bringing in any animals should know better.
 

Dace

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When compared to other crimes, It does sound harsh. The truth is this, don't do anything illegal. Like mentioned, he's not the first or the last. I can only guess that this was not his first time. He and anyone bringing in any animals should know better.
+1. The key word is Illegal. People do illegal stuff everyday. Just because others do it, does that mean nothing should be done about it. When you do something illegal, you run the risk of getting caught.I'm sure people know what the penalties can be. So i would think, don't do anything illegal, then you won't have to worry about who's doing it. The people running the risk are the ones who will pay the penalty if caught. I'm sure they're not going to say " what about this person, there doing it too". And if they do, i guess that would be better for customs.
 
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And while we are at it-- ALL Dendrophyllia corals are illegal to import into the US as they are not found in areas that we possess CiTies treaties with for this Genera. So if you own a Dendro, or see one for sale, it was imported illegally -- period. Personal ownership and resale is illegal too I think, but I'm not 100% sure on that. The same goes for Rhizos.

Edit: Let me slightly amend that--- Dendrophyllia from Australia is a legally permitted import ( the colonial small polyp type), but all the other ones-- the large polyp ones , the Japanese ones pretty much all the ones we like and regularly keep and trade are illegal. And I did confirm that possession and resale/trade is, in fact, technically illegal under the Lacey Act.
 
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Dace

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And while we are at it-- ALL Dendrophyllia corals are illegal to import into the US as they are not found in areas that we possess CiTies treaties with for this Genera. So if you own a Dendro, or see one for sale, it was imported illegally -- period. Personal ownership and resale is illegal too I think, but I'm not 100% sure on that.
Oh well. i think i have two heads that refuse to die, How about giving it away. Is that illegal. My only claim is that if its being sold all over including Internet, i would of assumed it wasn't illegal,But i guess i was wrong. In the garbage they go. I hated having to spot feed it anyway. Or can they be donated legally.
 
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Chiefmcfuz

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Dace giving something away is considered selling something for free in NY. So yes giving someone something is selling them something technically.
 
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I don't think you need to throw them away Dave. No one is going to knock on your door over this. :) My point was simply that these are smuggled quite frequently, and Russo was unfortunately the one that was caught. It does reflect badly on the hobby when this stuff happens and gives ammunition to those that want to heavily regulate or shut it down.
 

Dace

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Dace giving something away is considered selling something for free in NY. So yes giving someone something is selling them something technically.

Only in NY.

That's ridiculous.

I need to go back to school.
1. To exchange or deliver for money or its equivalent.
2. To offer for sale, as for one's business or livelihood: The partners sell textiles.
3. To give up or surrender in exchange for a price or reward: sell one's soul to the devil.
4. To be purchased in (a certain quantity); achieve sales of: a book that sold a million copies.
 
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