Press Release
MIAMI RESIDENT SENTENCED FOR ILLEGALLY HARVESTING AND SELLING MARINE LIFE FROM KEYS SANCTUARY
July 18, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Eddie McKissick, Resident Agent in Charge, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Hal Robbins, Special Agent in Charge, NOAA Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement, Southeast Division, Commander Dave Score, Superintendent of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, and Captain Jeff Ardelean, Regional Investigations Captain, South Region, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC), announced that defendant Alexandre Alvarenga-Freire, 40, of Miami, Florida, was sentenced today in connection with the illegal harvesting and sale in interstate and foreign commerce of Ricordia florida, an invertebrate corallimorph, in violation of the federal Lacey Act, Title 16, United States Code, Sections 3372 and 3373.
United States District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan sentenced Alvarenga-Freire to a ten month term of imprisonment, to be followed by one year of supervised release. In addition, the 1969, 34' fiberglass hulled Morgan sailing vessel, "PIPPIN," which was used in the commission of the offense was forfeited to the United States as a result of the violations.
The corallimorph involved in this matter, Ricordia florida, are prized by aquarists for their varied coloration and their ability to impart a "natural" look to tank displays. Both federal and Florida law closely regulate the harvesting and sale of such marine life. Pursuant to the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Protection Act and the National Marine Sanctuary Act, the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration issued regulations in 1997 to govern activities within the sanctuary. Title 15, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 922 prohibits the removal of, injury to, or possession of coral or live rock and further prohibits moving, removing, taking, harvesting, damaging, disturbing, breaking, cutting, or otherwise injuring any living or dead coral or coral formation, or attempting any of these activities without a specific permit. Florida Administrative Code, Section 68B-42.008, prohibits the harvest of live rock and Florida Statue 370.07 requires that a person who sells salt water marine related wildlife such as Ricordia florida, to hold a State wholesale and retail license. Alvarenga-Freire held none of the required permits or licenses to engage in these activities.
According to the Information filed in this matter, other court documents, and a statement of facts presented in Court, in November 2006 two German nationals were intercepted at Miami International Airport attempting to export 500 specimens of Ricordia florida, with live rock attached to the polyps, for sale through their business in Dusseldorf, Germany. They admitted to investigators that they had been involved with Alvarenga-Freire in harvesting the marine life while aboard his vessel, the "PIPPIN", east of Cudjoe Key in Monroe County. Their description made clear the activity had occurred in the Sanctuary.
Investigators placed a Global Positioning System tracking device on the boat and monitored its location through January 25, 2007 when Alvarenga-Freire was arrested at Cudjoe Key Marina returning from the Sanctuary with a load of 400 specimens of Ricordia florida. The tracking device placed the harvesting location within the Sanctuary, confirming the information from the German nationals. Further confirmation was acquired by having a Immigration and Customs Enforcement aircraft conduct an overflight of the vessel during the three-day harvesting trip prior to Alvarenga-Freire's arrest.
The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) is a 2,800 square nautical mile area that surrounds the entire archipelago of the Florida Keys and includes the productive waters of Florida Bay, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Atlantic Ocean. The FKNMS encompasses coastal and oceanic waters, and the submerged lands thereunder, surrounding the Florida Keys, and extending westward to include the Tortugas islands, but excluding Dry Tortugas National Park and supports rich biological communities with extensive conservation, recreational, commercial, ecological, historical, research, educational, and aesthetic values of national significance.
Mr. Acosta commended the coordinated investigative efforts of the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the NOAA Office For Enforcement, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission, Immigration & Customs Enforcement, and the personnel of the Damage Assessment & Resource Protection Office of the National Marine Sanctuary Program. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Thomas Watts-FitzGerald and Certified Legal Intern Courtney R. Berman.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
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