turtles were allegedly found strapped to his groin and legs as
he crossed the US-Canada border.
Kai Xu, 26, had reportedly attempted to take the creatures into
Windsor, Ontario, from Detroit in August, according to a
federal court filing.
He is alleged to have picked up a box scrawled with the words
“live fish keep cool” from a Detroit postal centre, before
disappearing for 10 minutes with tape, scissors and items
from the box.
He was then observed, by agents from the Fish and Wildlife
Service, to have developed “irregularly shaped bulges” in his
tracksuit bottoms.
In the criminal complaint, Fish and Wildlife Service Special
Agent Matthew Martin said: “Xu had 41 turtles taped to his
legs and 10 hidden between his legs.”
According to Detroit News , Xu, who is a Canadian citizen and
student at the University of Waterloo, appeared in court
yesterday charged with smuggling, illegal trading and
exporting. He faces up to 10 years in prison.
The species of turtles allegedly found on Xu’s person included
those indigenous to North America including Eastern box
turtles – which can be sound for up to $800 each,
Herpetologist David Mifsud told Detroit News .
Mr Mifsud also told the Toronto Star : “Smuggling turtles across
international border is unfortunately an increasingly common
occurrence.”
The turtles have since been handed over the relevant
authorities and “are receiving adequate care,” a spokeswoman
for the Fish and Wildlife Service said. “Once the case is closed,
the turtles are placed permanently.”
Xu was arrested on Wednesday alongside another Canadian,
Lihua Lin, 30, after Xu picked up a number of live turtles
from a FedEx outpost and the two met at a hotel in the town
of Novi, Michigan, according to the complaint.
The nest morning the men drove to the airport where Lin,
who was attempting to travel alone to Shanghai, China, was
found to have more than 200 North American pond turtles
within his luggage.
Lin was released on a $10,000 unsecured bond yesterday.
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