Khaberni - A court in Sydney issued an 8-year prison sentence for a 61-year-old man after he was convicted of attempting to smuggle geckos, dragons, and Australian reptiles inside popcorn bags and biscuit tins, in a case described by authorities as unprecedented in the history of wildlife trafficking in Australia.
The court ruled that Neil Simpson serve a minimum non-parole period of five years and four months, according to the federal environmental authorities announced on Tuesday.
Investigators, according to "France Press", recovered 101 types of reptiles that had been smuggled between 2018 and 2023 in 15 packages destined for Hong Kong, South Korea, Sri Lanka, and Romania, according to an official statement.
The confiscated species included Shingleback lizards, Western blue-tongued lizards, bearded dragons, and a southern pygmy spiny-tailed skink.
Simpson tried to conceal these animals in fabric bags inside popcorn bags and biscuit tins and a women's handbag before placing them in cardboard boxes.
The statement added that the accused had tried to use other people to send the animals on his behalf, but investigators from the government and New South Wales police uncovered his scheme. Three other people were convicted for their involvement in the crime.
The New South Wales Ministry of Environment noted that the illegal wildlife trade is not a victimless crime, explaining that it harms environmental conservation efforts and threatens the unique biodiversity of the state and Australia in general.
