SALT LAKE CITY: Federal authorities recently put some snakes on a plane bound for Brazil, ending a wildlife smuggling case involving a Lindon reptile dealer.
The seven boa constrictors are the offspring of a rare white boa known as “Lucy” or “Diamond Princess” that Jeremy Stone obtained from a Rio de Janeiro zoo and illegally brought to the United States in January 2009.
Because of its rarity, Brazilian officials housed the snake at the Niterói Zoo, a private foundation that rescues and rehabilitates injured wild animals. It was found in the Niterói district of Rio de Janeiro in 2006.
After learning that Stone was marketing snakes bred from a white boa, the Brazilian government asked U.S. officials for help in getting it and any offspring returned.
Armed with a search warrant, FBI agents raided Stone’s property and learned the boa had died. U.S. marshals took eight of its offspring to Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City, where one of them died a short time later.
Stone, a reptile collector, breeder and seller, pleaded guilty in federal court last July to unlawfully transporting wildlife. A judge sentenced him to 12 months of probation. Stone had to give up the snakes as part of a plea agreement.
Last October, the Brazilian government filed a petition asserting ownership of the white boa and its offspring because it had been caught in the wild. The court awarded the snakes to Brazil in February.
“The successful prosecution of Mr. Stone and the recovery and repatriation of the offspring from this rare and valuable leucistic boa constrictor are due to the exceptional cooperation between the United States and Brazilian authorities,” said Utah U.S. Attorney John Huber.
“The illegal wildlife trade threatens the survival of many threatened and endangered species, and Mr. Stone’s conviction in this case demonstrates our resolve to prosecute those who engage in such activities.”
Stone sent thousands of dollars to the Brazilian zoo administrator between 2007 and 2009 as payment for the snake, according to a federal indictment filed in January 2014.
He sent or had others send emails to the administrator discussing how he could get the boa out of Brazil without export permits. The emails included photos demonstrating how the administrator should pack the snake in Stone’s sister’s luggage, according to the indictment.
Stone and his sister Kerri Ann Stone, of Midvale, attempted to leave Brazil on a cruise ship back to the United States but were denied permission to board because she appeared to be in the late months of pregnancy, the indictment says.
They also attempted to board a flight to the United States, but airport security temporarily detained them after finding that she was wearing a hollow, false pregnancy belly and bra. The indictment says the they were testing airport security.
The Stones ultimately moved the white boa from Brazil to Guyana, where a veterinarian created a fake certificate of origin showing the snake was caught in Guyana, according to the indictment.
Jeremy Stone sent the white boa and other snakes to the United States, declaring on a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service form that they were caught in Guyana and valued at $220, the indictment says.
The snakes were cleared for entry in Miami based on false information on the form, and transported to Stone Reptiles in Lindon, according to the indictment.
