Two men charged with smuggling fish....
Two Long Island men were arrested at the Canadian border trying to smuggle endangered tropical fish known as the Asian dragon fish, or arowana, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said Tuesday.
The two men concealed the dragon fish -- which retail for as much as $10,000 on the black market -- in the trunk of their car, said Kevin Corsaro, chief Customs and Border Patrol officer at agency's Buffalo office.
Robert Battaglia, 40, and Richard Feustel, 59, had the fish in water-filled bags hidden in the spare tire well of their car, Corsaro said. Feustel, of Middle Island, and Battaglia, of Ronkonkoma, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
The two had already appeared in court and, he thought, had been released by Tuesday, said Corsaro, who spoke in an interview while he was away from his office and did not have immediate access to his case file.
Newsday's Long Island news map. See what's going on. The smuggling charges carry a maximum penalty of $250,000 and a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment per fish, a customs agency statement said.
Corsaro provided Newsday a photo of the four fish, each in its own clear plastic bag, cached in the car trunk alongside a packet of what appeared to be fish food.
It was on Saturday at the Lewiston Bridge Crossing in upstate New York when border patrol officers first questioned Battaglia and Feustel as they tried to re-enter the U.S.
Their answers seemed suspicious, so a border patrol officer searched their car trunk and "discovered four live Asian arowana fish (Arowana Scleropages Formosas), commonly known as Asian dragon fish, concealed in the spare tire well," Corsaro said.
Under interrogation by border patrol and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents, Battaglia said he was asked by a friend in New York City to buy the fish and bring them back to the city, Corsaro said.
Battaglia said he was promised two arowanas as payment for smuggling the contraband fish, which he bought for $1,000 each from a Toronto pet store, Corsaro said.
The color of the arowana depends on what specific region of Southeast Asia it comes from, and the fish is commonly known as Asian dragon fish because of its resemblance to the Chinese dragon, Corsaro's statement said.
They have a special cultural significance in areas influenced by Chinese culture, as the fish are considered lucky because of this resemblance to the Chinese dragon, he said.
The Asian arowana fish are covered under the Endangered Species Act in the United States and cannot be possessed without a permit.
Both Battaglia and Feustel were arrested by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and charged with illegal importation of wildlife articles, Corsaro said.
The fish were turned over to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be used as evidence, he said. A Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman was not available for comment Tuesday.
"The trafficking of endangered fish and wildlife decreases the population of these already threatened species," James T. Engleman, Customs Border Patrol director of field operations for the Buffalo Field Office, said in a statement.
"This seizure demonstrates CBP's continued commitment to enforcing all U.S. laws and the vigilance and awareness of our officers, as well as our cooperation and coordination with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service."
Two Long Island men were arrested at the Canadian border trying to smuggle endangered tropical fish known as the Asian dragon fish, or arowana, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said Tuesday.
The two men concealed the dragon fish -- which retail for as much as $10,000 on the black market -- in the trunk of their car, said Kevin Corsaro, chief Customs and Border Patrol officer at agency's Buffalo office.
Robert Battaglia, 40, and Richard Feustel, 59, had the fish in water-filled bags hidden in the spare tire well of their car, Corsaro said. Feustel, of Middle Island, and Battaglia, of Ronkonkoma, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
The two had already appeared in court and, he thought, had been released by Tuesday, said Corsaro, who spoke in an interview while he was away from his office and did not have immediate access to his case file.
Newsday's Long Island news map. See what's going on. The smuggling charges carry a maximum penalty of $250,000 and a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment per fish, a customs agency statement said.
Corsaro provided Newsday a photo of the four fish, each in its own clear plastic bag, cached in the car trunk alongside a packet of what appeared to be fish food.
It was on Saturday at the Lewiston Bridge Crossing in upstate New York when border patrol officers first questioned Battaglia and Feustel as they tried to re-enter the U.S.
Their answers seemed suspicious, so a border patrol officer searched their car trunk and "discovered four live Asian arowana fish (Arowana Scleropages Formosas), commonly known as Asian dragon fish, concealed in the spare tire well," Corsaro said.
Under interrogation by border patrol and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents, Battaglia said he was asked by a friend in New York City to buy the fish and bring them back to the city, Corsaro said.
Battaglia said he was promised two arowanas as payment for smuggling the contraband fish, which he bought for $1,000 each from a Toronto pet store, Corsaro said.
The color of the arowana depends on what specific region of Southeast Asia it comes from, and the fish is commonly known as Asian dragon fish because of its resemblance to the Chinese dragon, Corsaro's statement said.
They have a special cultural significance in areas influenced by Chinese culture, as the fish are considered lucky because of this resemblance to the Chinese dragon, he said.
The Asian arowana fish are covered under the Endangered Species Act in the United States and cannot be possessed without a permit.
Both Battaglia and Feustel were arrested by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and charged with illegal importation of wildlife articles, Corsaro said.
The fish were turned over to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be used as evidence, he said. A Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman was not available for comment Tuesday.
"The trafficking of endangered fish and wildlife decreases the population of these already threatened species," James T. Engleman, Customs Border Patrol director of field operations for the Buffalo Field Office, said in a statement.
"This seizure demonstrates CBP's continued commitment to enforcing all U.S. laws and the vigilance and awareness of our officers, as well as our cooperation and coordination with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service."
Evidence that you can keep both asians in a 300 gallon tank