Six U.S. men sentenced for smuggling corals from PH

REUTERS/Chip East

Six men on April 4 were sentenced for smuggling marine corals from the Philippines for retail sale in the United States.

Allen William Ockey, 35, of Long Beach, California, pleaded guilty to Wildlife Trafficking felony charges and was sentenced to a term of two years’ probation and required to pay a donation to a Philippines organization dedicated to coral reef restoration in the amount of $5,000.

In separate filings, the following individuals — Derek M. Kelley, 31, of Elkhart, Indiana; James Knight, 47, of Newaygo, Michigan; Valeriy V. Gorbounov, 46, of Morrison, Colorado; Nathan C. Meisner, 35, of Rapid City, South Dakota; and Ricky A. Sprires, 34, of Gilbert South Carolina — each charged with misdemeanor offenses related to violations of the Lacey Act, pleaded guilty to Wildlife Trafficking.

They were sentenced to probation of two years, required to pay contributions to a Philippine-based coral reef restoration organization in amounts varying from $2,000 to $4,000 and conditions that they do not import or sell corals for the term of probation:

The indictment and separate filings all alleged that between July 2017 and August 2018, the defendants paid a Philippine national to dive for and collect protected marine corals which they would then sell online to coral collectors and hobbyists.

Some corals were illegally sold in violation of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), an international treaty implemented to prevent species from becoming endangered or extinct because of international commercial trade.

Additionally, Philippine law prohibits any person to gather, possess, commercially transport, sell or export corals commercially regardless of CITES status. In total, the defendants, through their Philippine supplier, illegally trafficked for sale more than 3,000 separate pieces of coral in violation of Philippines and United States law.

Court documents state that the Philippines is one of six countries straddling the Coral Triangle, a 5.4 million-square-kilometer stretch of ocean that contains 75% of the world’s coral species, one-third of the Earth’s coral reefs and more than 3,000 species of fish. Poaching for corals and other factors have left only 5% of coral reefs in the Philippines in “excellent” condition, with only 1% in a “pristine” state.

The coral supplier, Glenn Albert Binoya, a Philippine national, was charged by Philippine authorities based on investigation provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Binoya, 47, died of unrelated medical issues prior to resolution of his case.