Man sentenced for smuggling turtles from U.S. to China

Sai Keung Tin, a Chinese citizen, was sentenced to nearly three years in prison for smuggling protected eastern box turtles from the U.S. to China. He pleaded guilty to four counts of illegal exportation. Tin trafficked around 2,100 turtles over five years, with a black market value of $4.2 million. The turtles were intercepted in California, hidden in packages labeled as food items. Tin has already served over a year in prison and plans to appeal the sentence. He was arrested in February 2024 after arriving in New York, linked to a larger smuggling operation involving an international turtle trafficker.