Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Unlawfully Importing Internationally Protected Reptiles from Australia

A Texas man made his initial appearance in court and pleaded guilty today to violating the Endangered Species Act by importing protected Australian reptiles into the United States on behalf of a fake zoo which he represented as legitimate.

According to court documents, Don Church imported 165 native Australian reptiles by providing false information to Australian and U.S. authorities. The imported reptiles included three Rusty Monitor (Varanus Semiremex) lizards, which are protected internationally by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

Church imported the reptiles on behalf of the "Austin Reptile Center," a non-existent facility. He submitted documents to Australian authorities containing misrepresentations about the facility, including photographs of reptile exhibits, employee names and positions, floor plans, location and financial information. But Church knew no facility suitable for reptile care existed.

To gain purported legal authority to import the reptiles, Church submitted documentation containing misleading and erroneous information about the fictious Austin Reptile Center to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). He then imported the reptiles on behalf of the Austin Reptile Center, knowing that import was unlawful.

To protect species against over-exploitation, CITES regulates trade in endangered and threatened species through permit and quota requirements. The U.S. and 183 countries are signatories to the CITES treaty. The United States implements CITES through the Endangered Species Act, and the USFWS enforces it.

Church pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging violation of the Endangered Species Act. He faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of up to $50,000.

Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division and Assistant Director Edward Grace of the USFWS' Office of Law Enforcement made the announcement.

The USFWS is investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Sarah M. Brown of the Environment and Natural Resources Division's Environmental Crimes Section is prosecuting the case.