A
Anonymous
Guest
Brooklyn - Fuyi Ge, a former fish importer from Flushing, N.Y., was
sentenced July 17 in federal court in Brooklyn to a prison term and
fines for violating the federal Lacey Act by smuggling mitten crabs
from Asia into the United States, said Special Agent in Charge
Thomas J. Healy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Northeast
Region.
The court sentenced Ge to three months in prison, three months home
detention, and three years probation, as well as more than $3,000 in
fines, for his violation, said Healy.
The mitten crab is a food delicacy in Asian countries, commanding a
retail cost of $40 a pound, he said.
"Mitten crabs are extremely destructive to the environment. Crabs
imported directly from Asia are likely to carry the Asian lung
fluke, a parasite which when ingested can cause tuberculosis and
influenza-like symptoms in people," said Healy.
Mitten crabs may also pose an economic and ecological risk if a live
population becomes established. The crabs could jeopardize fisheries
by eating fish and damaging fishing nets, increase erosion and
flooding by burrowing into shoreline levies, and threaten native
wildlife populations through predation and competition.
The importation of live mitten crabs or their eggs is strictly
prohibited under the Lacey Act, the federal law regulating the
importation, transportation or acquisition of animals that
potentially pose a risk to the health and welfare of people or
wildlife, or that could be damaging to agriculture, horticulture and
forestry. The Service designated the mitten crab as injurious under
the Act in 1989.
In November 2001, Service wildlife inspectors acting on a tip
intercepted 10 cartons at JFK International Airport containing more
than 1,300 live mitten crabs among a 70-carton shipment imported by
Ge. Invoices indicated that the entire shipment contained live fish,
not crabs. It was discovered that this was Ge's fourth shipment of
mitten crabs.
Special agents with the Service executed a federal search warrant at
Ge's home in December 2001, obtaining documents verifying that he
had illegally imported through JFK International four mitten crab
shipments with an estimated weight of 780 pounds and a retail value
of $32,000.
Ge was arrested in July 2002 and was later indicted by a federal
grand jury in Brooklyn on two felony counts for smuggling and making
false statements to Service special agents. He pleaded guilty on
April 23, 2003, to one felony count of smuggling live mitten crabs
into the country in violation of the Lacey Act.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Lipton of
the Eastern District of New York.
sentenced July 17 in federal court in Brooklyn to a prison term and
fines for violating the federal Lacey Act by smuggling mitten crabs
from Asia into the United States, said Special Agent in Charge
Thomas J. Healy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Northeast
Region.
The court sentenced Ge to three months in prison, three months home
detention, and three years probation, as well as more than $3,000 in
fines, for his violation, said Healy.
The mitten crab is a food delicacy in Asian countries, commanding a
retail cost of $40 a pound, he said.
"Mitten crabs are extremely destructive to the environment. Crabs
imported directly from Asia are likely to carry the Asian lung
fluke, a parasite which when ingested can cause tuberculosis and
influenza-like symptoms in people," said Healy.
Mitten crabs may also pose an economic and ecological risk if a live
population becomes established. The crabs could jeopardize fisheries
by eating fish and damaging fishing nets, increase erosion and
flooding by burrowing into shoreline levies, and threaten native
wildlife populations through predation and competition.
The importation of live mitten crabs or their eggs is strictly
prohibited under the Lacey Act, the federal law regulating the
importation, transportation or acquisition of animals that
potentially pose a risk to the health and welfare of people or
wildlife, or that could be damaging to agriculture, horticulture and
forestry. The Service designated the mitten crab as injurious under
the Act in 1989.
In November 2001, Service wildlife inspectors acting on a tip
intercepted 10 cartons at JFK International Airport containing more
than 1,300 live mitten crabs among a 70-carton shipment imported by
Ge. Invoices indicated that the entire shipment contained live fish,
not crabs. It was discovered that this was Ge's fourth shipment of
mitten crabs.
Special agents with the Service executed a federal search warrant at
Ge's home in December 2001, obtaining documents verifying that he
had illegally imported through JFK International four mitten crab
shipments with an estimated weight of 780 pounds and a retail value
of $32,000.
Ge was arrested in July 2002 and was later indicted by a federal
grand jury in Brooklyn on two felony counts for smuggling and making
false statements to Service special agents. He pleaded guilty on
April 23, 2003, to one felony count of smuggling live mitten crabs
into the country in violation of the Lacey Act.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Lipton of
the Eastern District of New York.
