Matthew Harrison Kail, 31, was sentenced to one year in prison on Tuesday for playing a key role in the reptile smuggling operation which involved shipping turtles from South Carolina to Hong Kong.
A Florida man was sentenced to prison this week for his role in a criminal operation that illegally smuggled rare turtles overseas in candy wrappers and socks.
Although the illicit wildlife trading ring was led by Steven Verren Baker, of Georgia, from within South Carolina, prosecutors asserted that Kail played a crucial part in the operation. Baker, whom authorities say is a notorious wildlife trader widely-known to South Carolina industry insiders, was sentenced to just over one year in prison in March.
Kail pleaded guilty last September to wildlife conspiracy charges after authorities established that he had been providing American turtles to the South Carolina operation ringleader in exchange for cash payments and foreign turtles. The reptiles traded by Kail were worth a total of roughly $300,000. At the time, prosecutors said Kail was aware that the turtles he traded were a protected species and that his dealings were illegal.
Kail’s one-year and one-day sentence means he is eligible to be released from prison on good behavior after 10-months, Delgado said.
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