Sydney reptile seizure

[peterescue]

Just caught the tail end of this on the ABC news

Last Update: Sunday, October 17, 2004. 10:14am (AEST)
Customs thwarts animal smugglers
Customs says it has intercepted several packages containing more than 50 native animals being sent from Australia to Japan.

The director of investigations for Customs in New South Wales, Robert Viles, says the 10 packages contained 50 shingleback lizards, an eastern long-neck turtle and an inland bearded dragon.

He says the animals had been wrapped tightly in socks and towels and he says may of them may have died on the way to Japan.

The packages were intercepted at Sydney Airport by the mail-handling unit.

Mr Viles says wildlife smuggling is cruel and is treated very seriously.

"The penalties are very severe," he said. "The penalties provided are either a 10-year jail sentence or a $110,000 fine or both.

"Because of the nature of the offence and the penalties involved we treat it very, very seriously."

 

[dobermanmick]

How much would they have paid for them over there ?

 

[Guest]

And oh yeah. the reptiles were labelled as 'souveniers'

 

[Cerion]

Don't these people get it yet?

Such a sad way to end an animals life

 

[dobermanmick]

Another ballot maybe ?

 

[africancichlidau]

Bags I the Shingleback

 

[keelow]

Fine should 1 million dollars per animal or 5 years per animal, anything over 20 animals, Life.

 

[koreanmug]

wow!! $110,000 fine!! that's alot.. i reckon Australian law is too strick on wildlife

 

[Linus]

i reckon Australian law is too strick on wildlife

I hope thats a joke??

 

[instar]

Re: RE: Sydney reptile seizure

How much would they have paid for them over there ?

Todays paper says they will pay $1000 for a shingleback !! :shock:

 

[womas4me]

RE: Re: RE: Sydney reptile seizure

Agree about the fines. They should be huge with time inside also to deter others

 

[koreanmug]

i reckon Australian law is too strick on wildlife

I hope thats a joke??

I mean compare to any other country

 

[Linus]

Ok. So you are saying we should reduce the penalties for illegal smuggling of our native animals?

 

[Greebo]

I guess this is the upside to increased security.Millions is being spent on better technology in the next couple of years so it is going to be even harder for these unscrupulous smugglers.

 

[Fuscus]

the news article
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200410/s1221705.htm
Wildlife offences penaties should be high, we only catch a small percentage of offences. If they make $10,000 a shipment (what is the price of sleepies in Japan?) all they need to do is 10 sucessful shipments to one intercepted shipments to break even.
If you are caught abalone poaching in Victoria not only can you cop a $250,000 fine but you also lose all equipment, diving gear, boats and the car used to tow the boat

 

[Sdaji]

Smuggling for profit should have very severe penalties, however, the demand is so high that it will occur, like it or not. They should allow exportation of wildlife, it will direct money to people acting legally and responsibly instead of law breaking smugglers. The animals would also be sent humanely and few if any would die, unlike the current situation, so fewer animals would leave the country and more would arrive alive. Royalties attached would benefit our economy, everyone would win except the smugglers.

 

[snakehunter]

Saw it on ten late news last night, the reporter called the shingles "shingle-black lizards"

 

[Simon_Archibald]

I think the exportation of Australian species legally as Sdaji said certainly has it's benefits. Of course, this should only be done with captive bred animals (which of course helps breeders over here). If overseas buyers would pay much more than Aussies would for certain species, then good luck to them.

I think also that shipping of animals should be done by a uniform process for everyone in the country...possibly under standards and in containers produced by our authorities.

...if that makes sense.

Simon Archibald

 

[moosenoose]

I think this borders again the pros & cons of the exotics debate Simon

It's all about having it properly regulated and strict guidelines enforced. I know of one person who has animals on an international license and there is no problems associated with it. He cannot bred them, sell them or understandably release them, they have to be desexed (I think?) and micro-chipped. All of these actions have been followed and in my opinion makes the situation work. Why can't this happen elsewhere?

Lets face it they are in the country now! People still own them now! It's a blind eye policy at present on something that could be better controlled. I would also sooner buy an exotic animal from a reputable Australian breeder rather buying sight-unseen from an overseas market! The quarantine issue associated with bringing bucketloads of boas etc into the country is a recipe for disaster.

 

[Sdaji]

I think the exotics in Australia issue is quite different from export issues. There is always the arguement that making it illegal will minimise the numbers and species kept, but with exporting this is hardly the case, less animals would leave the country if exporting was legal and more of them would be captive bred. The money would go to the right places, including (probably) government royalties. Legal exporting would benefit wild reptile populations in Australia, this arguement doesn't exist for exotics in Australia.

By the way, I can't see bucketloads of boas coming into Australia if the laws were changed, there are already heaps here, it would just be a case of more of the bastards being bred. Why does everyone want boas so badly? A carpet $#!ts all over a boa! If you want a big snake, I don't think you can really argue with a well fed olive or scrubby. If you want something pretty and aren't happy with jungles, bredli, saphire blue and emerald green tree snakes and many of the others, leave the country and get a stupid little corn snake :roll: