Elderly Cuban man pleads guilty to smuggling birds in pants
AN elderly Cuban man has pleaded guilty to smuggling Cuban birds in his pants on arrival at Miami International Airport.
On Saturday, immigration officials reported that while at the airport, Alberto Diaz Gonzalez, 76, pleaded guilty to smuggling the undeclared Cuban wildlife – Cuban bullfinches, or Negritos de Cuba – at the airport.
Authorities said when Diaz Gonzalez returned from Havana, the Cuban capital, on October 20, he declared on paper and verbally that he was not carrying birds or other wildlife.
But officials said the Customs and Border Protection officer was unconvinced and during a search 16 Cuban bullfinches were found in a plastic cylinder that was sewn into a pants pocket.
Diaz Gonzalez, a Miami resident, was arrested after admitting he bought the birds during his trip to Cuba and planned to sell them in the United States.
According to US federal law, all wildlife imported into the US must first be declared and inspected before entering the country.
Diaz Gonzalez faces up to 20 years in jail when he is sentenced in February in Miami federal district court.
