NJ Man Sentenced to Home Confinement for Shipping Iguanas as Toys

A man from the Garden State has been sentenced to six months of home confinement and three years of probation for falsely labeling an international shipment of wildlife as "toys."

44-year-old Jason Ksepka of Farmingdale, Monmouth County, previously pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Lacey Act by falsely labeling the shipment of ten live rhinoceros iguanas that were destined for Hong Kong.

Authorities say,

On Nov. 7, 2017, Ksepka shipped a package via U.S. Priority Mail Express from the U.S. Post Office in Lambertville, New Jersey. The package contained 10 live rhinoceros iguanas and was destined for Hong Kong. Ksepka falsely described the contents of the package as “Toys” and the sender as “Luke Jacobs” on a U.S. Postal Service International Shipping Label and Customs Form that accompanied the package. On Nov. 8, 2017, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Inspectors intercepted the package at the mail facility at John F. Kennedy International Airport and recovered the rhinoceros iguanas from inside the package.

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Officials say Ksepka was paid $500 by an individual to falsely label that package. One year earlier, that same person had paid Ksepka to do the same thing.

As part of his plea agreement, Ksepka will pay a $1,000 fine to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Lacey Act Reward Fund.

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