October 20, 2015, New Jersey
He sold turtles to buyers from his home in Jersey City, stuffing the live creatures in tube socks to restrict their movement, and then shipping them by commercial carrier—a violation the federal Lacey Act, which prohibits trade in illegally procured plants and wildlife.
A U.S. District Court judge in Newark sentenced Elfers on Tuesday to five years of probation for the trafficking of turtles over the internet. He had been facing up to five years in prison.
Judge Stanley R. Chesler also ordered Elfers to pay a $30,450 for the care and feeding of 40 turtles he forfeited under a plea agreement, said the U.S. Attorney's office.
According to prosecutors, Elfers, 48, advertised the turtles for sale on wildlife trade websites to buyers in New Jersey and elsewhere between December 2011 and March 2014. In one transaction, he sold two Spotted Turtles for $450.
Elfers pleaded guilty in June, admitting he kept a variety of turtles, including North American Wood Turtles, Spotted Turtles and Eastern box turtles, some of which he purchased from an unidentified co-conspirator living in West Virginia, according to court papers.
According to the state Department of Environmental Protection, the Wood Turtle is designated as a "threatened" species because it is already vulnerable and could become endangered. The Spotted Turtle and Eastern Box Turtle are both listed by the DEP as "species of special concern."
Rachel Kramer of the World Wildlife Fund said trafficking of threatened turtles was by no means unique to New Jersey.
"Tortoises and freshwater turtles are being stolen from the wild all over the world to be sold into the exotic pet, meat, and traditional medicine trades. Just last month, Madagascar's customs and border police found more than 700 critically endangered tortoises being smuggled at the national airport," she said.
In January of this year, there were reported seizures of over 7,500 Indonesian pig-nosed tortoises en-route to Asian markets.
Federal wildlife authorities, meanwhile, have taken a hard stance in recent years against the growing practice of trade in endangered species, including turtles.
In August, a suburban Chicago man caught in an international turtle smuggling sting was sentenced to more than three years in prison. Prosecutors said Keith Cantore, 35, had prior convictions for violating federal wildlife trafficking statutes. After his arrest, agents said they found 190 turtles at his home and more than 100 turtles and six alligators were in nearby warehouse that he rented.
Last December, a San Gabriel, Calif., man was sent to federal prison for two months for trying to smuggle 26 eastern box turtles and 20 African Spurred Tortoises into Hong Kong. Kwong Wa Cheung, 36, pleaded guilty to one count of mislabeling wildlife intended for foreign commerce.