Turtle Smugglers Plead Guilty: Update

Jorge Caraveo of El Paso, Texas, and Carlos Leal Barragan of Jalisco, Mexico, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Denver to felony charges in connection with the smuggling of sea turtle and other exotic skins and skin products into the United States from Mexico.^[1] Caraveo pleaded guilty to three counts of smuggling, and Leal Barragan pleaded guilty to one count of smuggling and one count of money laundering.^[2]

Caraveo, Leal Barragan and nine others were indicted in Denver in August 2007 following a multi-year undercover investigation named Operation Central, conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Branch of Special Operations.^[3] They and five other defendants were arrested on Sept. 6, 2007; Chinese nationals Fu Yiner and Wang Hong, and Oscar Cueva of McAllen, Texas, pleaded guilty to smuggling charges earlier this month.^[4]

Caraveo and Leal Barragan were indicted in connection with the smuggling of sea turtle and other exotic leathers and exotic leather products into the United States from Mexico.^[5] As set forth in the indictment and acknowledged in his plea agreement, Caraveo received sea turtle and other exotic skins, boots, and other products from his co-defendants in Juarez, Mexico, and brought the skins, boots and other products into the United States in violation of U.S. law.^[6]

Barragan sold sea turtle skins in Mexico and sold them to customers in Mexico and undercover agents in the United States.^[7] He then sent the skins to Caraveo for smuggling across the border into the United States.^[8] As payment for the skins, Leal Barragan received international wire transfers from Colorado to his Mexican bank account.^[9]

In previous posts, federal criminal defense lawyer Douglas McNabb has discussed, this case in particular, here; charges of wildlife trafficking, in cases involving leopard sharks and Honduran lobsters.

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^[1] U.S. DOJ Staff, Press Release, Two More Plead Guilty in Turtle Smuggling Case U.S. Department of Justice, January 29, 2007, available at http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/01-29-2008/0004745513&EDATE (last visited February 1, 2008).
^[2] Id.
^[3] Id.
^[4] Id.
^[5] Id.
^[6] Id.
^[7] Id.
^[8] Id.
^[9] Id.