SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — A man suspected of illegally trafficking protected exotic birds through the San Ysidro Port of Entry appeared in court Tuesday.
Juandaniel Medina, 24, of Lindsay, CA, faces an importation contrary to law charge, with a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and $250,000 fine, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a news release.
“According to a federal complaint, Medina was the driver and registered owner of a vehicle in which U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials found the birds; he admitted paying $700 cash for the parrots with the intention of breeding and or reselling them in the United States in the future,” the DOJ said.
All seven of the parrots — six of which have been identified as Red-Lored Amazon Parrots — are alive and thriving at a quarantine facility managed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, per federal officials.
Amazon parrots are originally from Mexico, the West Indies and northern South America, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The incident comes following another Amazon parrots smuggling attempt at the same port of entry.
The risk of illegally importing birds can spread infectious diseases like the Avian influenza (bird flu).
