Posted on 09/26/2014 6:57:14 PM PDT by smoothsailing
September 26, 2014
Using information gained from an anonymous tip, U.S. authorities detained a man this summer after noticing irregularly shaped bulges in his sweatpants. But this wasnt the Underwear Bomber 2.0. Instead, a Canadian man had taped 51 live turtles to his legs and groin and was attempting to smuggle them across the border, The Guardian reported.
Kai Xu and his accomplice Lihua Lin were nabbed by U.S. Fish and Wildlife agents near the Detroit border crossing, where the two were attempting to cross into Windsor, Canada. Agents were tipped off by a Detroit UPS employee named Dave who contacted the fish and wildlife service and told them to be on the lookout for a seven-pound box labelled, Live fish keep cool.
In a dramatic turn of events not often seen in the world of wildlife management, agents put Xu under surveillance on Aug. 5 and observed him hiding behind two semi-truck trailers for around 10 minutes before reappearing with irregularly shaped bulges under Xus sweatpants on both legs, according to The Guardian.
While Xu was attempting to cross into Canada, Lin was caught at Detroit Metropolitan Airport, where he was trying to board a plane for Shanghai with two checked bags crammed with more than 200 turtles.
U.S. officials told the Guardian that turtle smuggling has increased over the past year due to increased demand in Asian food markets and from collectors.
These turtles, by the time they get to the end-collector, they can be worth anywhere from $1,300 to $1,500 a turtle, said Ed Grace, a deputy chief law enforcement officer with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Man, them snappers all around my feet.
Sure was hard swimmin' cross that thing,
With both hands holdin' my ding-a ling-a-ling!
Heck, given the potential profit, unless the USA for some God-forsaken reason bans the export of legally taken turtles, I’d do it on the up-and-up. Tariffs can’t be that high, or can they??? I suspect the real problem would be finding an honest broker. (I actually have a Chinese relative-by-marriage who’d likely be “up for it”, and has or could get the connections, but her trustworthiness is questionable.)
I’m not actually contemplating getting into this - but if I was, I might try to work with a local outfit that exports processed Asian Carp to China. If demand looked promising, there’s a small local catfish farm that seems to be “unworked” / semi-abandoned — maybe I’d look into financing, make the owner an offer, and revamp it... (Probably I’d leave one pond intact for catfish for my family!!!) Definitely, it’s something that would need a MUCH closer / in depth look than me “brainstorming” on a Friday night”, before getting involved!
LOL!!!!
Dixie, my dog, gets all freaked out every time a box turtle strolls into the yard.
I just need to know how I go about finding someone in Canadia
that will pay me $1,000 or more for a damn turtle.
How do I find that guy?
Wait, carrying animals around in your pants isn’t normal?
It’s a funny thing — my wife is a Filipina, and was pretty “green” oriented in the 1st years of our marriage. I’d told her about a time my Dad caught, and he and I butchered a good size common snapping turtle, which we had my Mom cook. My wife thought all turtles are sweet, peaceful, endangered creatures that should never be harmed, and was horrified. Then one day we happened to see a big snapper ON the road to our neighborhood. I stopped to get it safely off the road (which my wife thought was sweet of me), and of course this thing viciously lunges at me and in general demonstrates a snapper’s usual mean disposition — getting it off the road and not getting bitten was a bit of an exercise! My wife never thought of turtles (at least not snappers) the same way again: Now she wants me to catch one to make turtle soup!
Heh - I’m not sure. Talk to someone at an upscale Chinese restaurant? Or try searching on the web?
Depending on the state, box turtles might be illegal to sell / transport without a license.
Depends on the animal.
There are lots of turtles in Canada.
The tortoise bought the dog a beer to make up for biting his paw.
:D
I was hand-feeding spoiled brat Olive and she accidentally grabbed my finger and didn’t let go.
I yanked my hand back and she only released me when she started to be airborne.
It hurt like hell!
She’s got a beak like a parrot.
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