Renaissance Aquatics Inc. and Lim Aqua-Nautic Specialist Inc. each pleaded guilty to two felony counts of smuggling protected live coral. This is the final investigation from a multi-year undercover operation that was designed to address the prolific smuggling of hard corals from Southeast Asia because saltwater corals are under threat throughout the world due to climate change and illegal harvesting. By operating an undercover online coral business, Service agents, from our Torrance, California field office, were able to charge and convict four of the most prominent coral importers on the U.S. West Coast.
DOJ Press Release: Inglewood Marine Wildlife Companies Plead Guilty to Federal Criminal Charges for Unlawfully Importing Live Corals from Vietnam
Original source can be found here.
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