US jails Chinese man for smuggling ‘status symbol’ turtles to Hong Kong
- A Hong Kong man, Sai Keung Tin, was sentenced to two years and six months for smuggling eastern box turtles to Hong Kong, with sentencing occurring in Los Angeles federal court on Friday.
- Tin pleaded guilty to four counts of exporting merchandise contrary to law, having illegally aided in the export of 40 eastern box turtles.
- The turtles, valued at $2,000 each on the black market, were wrapped in socks and mislabeled as cookies to evade customs.
- Eastern box turtles are protected by an international agreement involving the U.S. And China.
16 Articles
16 Articles


Hong Kong turtle smuggler gets 2.5 years
ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — Sai Keung Tin, a Chinese national also known as Ricky Tin, received a 30‑month prison sentence for smuggling protected eastern box turtles—native to New York—back to Hong Kong. He was arrested at JFK airport in February 2024 and finally sentenced on Friday. Tin pleaded guilty in December to four counts of breaking export laws between February 2018 and June 2023. The 53-year-old shipped over two thousand turtles from the …


Poachers Brag About Their Haul to Fellow Airplane Passengers, Fail to Realize They're Talking to Plainclothes Wildlife Officers
The couple bragged not only about their own poached trophies, but also those of a close family member. All were convicted of their crimes.
He helped smuggle 'status symbol' turtles to China. He got nearly 3 years in prison
LOS ANGELES — The packages in a California mail facility were labeled as almonds and chocolate cookies. But inside were dozens of turtles wrapped in socks to keep them from moving and alerting authorities. They were among around 2,100 turtles…
Turtle trafficker in SoCal gets 30 months in prison for smuggling protect species to Hong Kong
A Hong Kong man was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison Friday for smuggling a protect turtles species after wildlife inspectors found the animals inside packages at a Southern California mail facility.
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