Two Busted For Trafficking Illegally Harvested Marine Life
MIAMI (CBSMiami/AP) - Two people, and the Florida company they were associated with, have been convicted and sentenced for trafficking juvenile nurse sharks and oversized angelfish that were illegally harvested in the Keys.
Aquatic Trading Co. was put on probation by a federal judge and fined $3,000. The company was also ordered to surrender all state and federal permits and licenses.
In addition, Walter and Lisa Bloecker of ATC previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to illegally market wildlife. Each is serving 90 days of home confinement.
According to prosecuters, the fish were illegally harvested in the Keys, with paperwork created to make it appear they were from Nicaragua. The nurse sharks and angelfish were marketed and shipped to a retailer in Michigan.
The harvesting of the sharks was done without a valid federal license and the angelfish were oversized.
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