Michael P. Ellard, a Florida reptile dealer, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today, Northern District of West Virginia in Martinsburg, W.Va. for his conviction on federal wildlife charges related to interstate turtle trafficking. Ellard will serve one year of home detention, five years of probation and pay $12,000.00 in restitution for his participation in the illegal capture and transportation of protected turtles, a violation of the Lacey Act, which prohibits trade in wildlife, fish, and plants that have been illegally taken, possessed, transported or sold.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Office of Law Enforcement worked in collaboration with the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources on the investigation, which began in June 2008 and focused on the illegal removal of State-protected turtles from the wild. That investigation led to a federal grand jury indictment of Ellard and two other Florida men for conspiracy and Lacey Act violations. Surveillance by law enforcement officers resulted in the apprehension of the three Florida men as they were transporting turtles to Florida on Interstate 81, an eastern interstate corridor, for eventual sale in the pet trade.
"This investigation once again shows the importance of Federal/State partnerships in protecting Americas wildlife," said Special Agent in Charge Salvatore Amato, who directs Service law enforcement operations in the Northeast. "Illegal collection and black market trade are significant threats to U.S. turtle populations - many of which already require state protection or regulation."
Ellard is the second of the three defendants to appear for sentencing in this case. Kelly W. Stoops II was sentenced in August 2009 by U.S. District Court Judge John Bailey to five months in federal prison, five months of home detention, and one year of supervised probation. A third man, Eric B. Diana, has not yet been sentenced, due to current incarceration in Florida on unrelated offenses. All three men pleaded guilty to one count under separate plea agreements.
At the time of their arrest, the three men were found with 108 wood turtles, 4 Eastern box turtles, and 6 snapping turtles in their possession during an attempt to transport them across state boundaries from West Virginia.
West Virginia has placed box turtles on their Rare, Threatened and Endangered Animals list as "very rare and imperiled." The State regulates the collection and commercialization of these and other native turtle species to ensure that such activity does not jeopardize the species survival in the wild.
There are close to 300 different kinds of turtles worldwide ranging from marine turtles, land turtles to freshwater turtles. Turtles have been known to exist in their earliest forms since approximately 230 million years ago. Turtles can live between 30 to 100 years.
Wood turtles are generally a long-lived species, reaching more than 33 years in the wild. In recent times, turtles have suffered habitat loss, highway mortality and collection for the pet trade industry.
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