WASHINGTON, July 23 -- The U.S. Department of Justice's Environment & Natural Resources Division issued the following news release:
Kin Keung Ho, of Staten Island, New York, pleaded guilty today for his role in trafficking turtles to Asia. Lihua Owen Ma, also of Staten Island, pleaded guilty to a similar charge on July 1.
According to documents filed in court, Ho and Ma were separately charged with exporting multiple species of U.S. native turtles, including eastern box turtles, western box turtles, three-toed box turtles, spotted turtles, and diamondback terrapins. The defendants each pleaded guilty to a Lacey Act felony and admitted they created false labels for the packages without having any of the required permits or declarations. Ho...