Mass. man accused of trafficking endangered wildlife remains
READING, Mass. (WPRI) — A Massachusetts man accused of selling the the skulls, skeletons and skins of protected wildlife throughout the United States is facing federal charges, according to prosecutors.
Adam Bied, 39, of Reading, has been charged with two counts of conspiracy to smuggle goods into the United States, specifically illegally imported wildlife remains, and three counts of violating the Lacey Act, which prohibits wildlife trafficking.
"The illicit trafficking of endangered wildlife for financial gain is a grave offense that poses a significant threat to global conservation efforts and preservation of these species," acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy said. "[Bied's] alleged conduct reflects a blatant disregard for the laws in place to safeguard our planet’s biodiversity."
Prosecutors said that, between January 2018 and June 2021, Bied would regularly order the remains of endangered wildlife from hunters in Cameroon and Indonesia. He would then ship the remains to buyers across the United States, usually in mislabeled packages to avoid detection.
Bied did not have the appropriate license or permit to commercially import wildlife remains, according to prosecutors, nor did he ever properly declare them when having them shipped to his address.
Prosecutors also said Bied knew the wildlife remains were not antiques from collectors and were intentionally killed in the wild.
"When Bied's Cameroon supplier informed him that his hunters lacked the ammunition to fulfil his skull requests, Bied offered to ship the hunters ammunition," prosecutors noted. "Bied also complained on numerous occasions about the bullet holes he was finding in the skulls that his Cameroon supplier would ship to him."
(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) started investigating Bied after a Customs and Border Protection officer noticed several skulls inside a package intended for his Reading home. Court documents noted that the skulls were intentionally hidden inside two hollow ceramic decorative masks.
Prosecutors said the USFWS covertly marked the skulls, packaged them back up and allowed them to be delivered to Bied's address.
Bied was taken into custody in July 2021 after an undercover agent bought a leopard skull from him online. That skull ended up being from the previously inspected package that had been marked by the USFWS.
The USFWS searched his home, as well as a storage unit, and found dozens of illegally imported skulls, skins, tusks, claws and skeletons.
The remains came from a variety of endangered, threatened and protected species, including orangutans, tigers, leopards, jaguars, lions, otters, narwhals, polar bears, seals, babirusas, baboons, elephants, jackals and wallabies, according to prosecutors.
(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)(Courtesy: U.S. District Court of Massachusetts)
Prosecutors have since filed a forfeiture complaint that would allow the USFWS to confiscate the wildlife remains.
"This forfeiture action sends a clear message that we will not only prosecute those who engage in illegal wildlife trafficking, but also take legal actions to strip them of their ill-gotten gains," Levy said.
Bied faces up to five years in prison for each charge he is facing, as well as three years of supervised release and fines up to $250,000.
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