In 2015 five defendants and one Hawaii-based company were charged for their involvement in a conspiracy to smuggle and sell illegally acquired ivory, bone and coral carvings and jewelry made from whale, walrus, black coral, and other wildlife.
In 2015 five defendants and one Hawaii-based company were charged for their involvement in a conspiracy to smuggle and sell illegally acquired ivory, bone and coral carvings and jewelry made from whale, walrus, black coral, and other wildlife.
The company, Hawaiian Accessories, Inc. and its president/CEO, Curtis Wilmington, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle wildlife into the United States. Wilmington was sentenced to six months imprisonment, three years of supervised release and a fine of $40,000 and sentenced the company to five years of probation and fined the company $50,000. The defendant also surrendered approximately $100,000 worth of ivory and black coral products.
Their five retail stores are located throughout Honolulu.
The two-year joint investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Law Enforcement uncovered the conspiracy ring in 2014.
The charges, according to a press release, carry up to 20 years in prison per person, per count of illegally importing merchandise, up to 10 years in prison for illegally exporting ivory, and up to five years in prison on each of the other charges, including the conspiracy. Each charge also carries a maximum fine of $250,000 for the individuals and $500,000 for the corporation.