12 Indicted in International Ring Accused of Smuggling Exotic Birds

Twelve people--including a Spring Valley man and an Escondido couple--were indicted Wednesday, accused of participating in an international smuggling ring that sneaked $500,000 worth of exotic parrots, rare birds and other protected wildlife into the United States, federal authorities said.

The action followed a 20-month undercover “sting” by U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents posing as collectors of exotic birds, including some of the world’s rarest.

The investigation led Fish and Wildlife and U. S. Customs Service agents to the discovery of a major pipeline that smuggled birds native to Southeast Asia and Central and South America by funneling them through Singapore and Argentina to Mexico City, officials said. From there, they were moved to Tijuana and eventually to U. S. bird dealers, who would then sell them for up to $10,000 each.

The U. S. attorney’s office in San Diego said the alleged ring members are charged with a host of federal criminal violations involving conspiracy, the trade of endangered species and quarantine and customs laws.

Worldwide Network

The 12 defendants were named in three separate indictments alleging, among other things, that bird dealers in Southern California would contact a network of bird dealers throughout the world and place orders for protected birds--including black palm cockatoos, hyacinth macaws and military macaws--that are so threatened with extinction that an international treaty with 97 nations prohibits all commercial trade in those species.

“Despite the threatened status of many species of exotic birds, the lure of quick and lucrative profits makes bird smuggling a thriving business,” said Marvin L. Plenert, regional director of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s regional office in Portland.

“Although half of the birds in a given shipment may die en route, the profit on the surviving birds more than offsets this loss.”

Among those indicted are Michael Keith Daye and Jane Mary Daye, who operated the Exotic Feathers bird store in Long Beach. They were arrested Wednesday morning at their home in the 1800 block of Summit Hill Drive in Escondido, where they recently moved.

Michael Daye was being held in lieu of $100,000 bail at the federal Metropolitan Correctional Center in downtown San Diego and, if convicted, faces 40 years in prison and a $2-million fine. His wife, who was released on a personal surety bond, faces 15 years in prison and a $750,000 fine if convicted.

Birds Seized

On Wednesday morning, authorities also arrested Zygmunt Kariata at his home in the 800 block of Paraiso Avenue in Spring Valley, where investigators seized 98 birds valued at about $250,000. Kariata was being held at the MCC on Wednesday in lieu of $50,000 bond and faces 25 years in prison and a $1.25-million fine if convicted.

Assistant U. S. Atty. Cynthia Lynne Millsaps said Kariata also had several hundred legal birds at his residence, where he apparently operated a bird business.

Others named in the federal indictments were:

* Honorio B. Oseguera, with addresses in San Ysidro and Tijuana, where a “safe house” for the birds was purportedly maintained until they were smuggled across the border. He was at large.

* Carlos Mendoza of Hawthorne, outside Los Angeles, also listed as a fugitive.

* Hugh Thomas Wilson of Long Beach, who is in custody in northern California on unrelated state charges.

* Francisco de Abiega and Rosa Lee Simon, both of Mexico City, both arrested Wednesday morning in Vista by undercover agents posing as exotic bird buyers. A detention hearing for each was scheduled for Friday before U. S. District Judge Lawrence Irving in San Diego.

* Eleen Koh of Singapore, who was arrested Wednesday morning in Honolulu.

* Luis Ortiz of Buenos Aires, listed as a fugitive.

* Harold Clayton Yanik of Charlotte Courthouse, Va., for whom a summons was issued.

* Tovar Antonio Alvarez, with addresses in Los Angeles and Tijuana, listed as a fugitive.

Millsaps said Fish and Wildlife undercover agents, working on a tip about the smuggling ring, posed as collectors of exotic birds. “When you have birds going for $10,000 each, we’re not talking about mom-and-pop bird collectors,” she said.

Authorities said foreign bird dealers would smuggle the birds into Singapore or Argentina, then, using false documents, ship them to De Abiega, a veterinarian who had an office at the Mexico City International Airport. He would then ship the birds to a safe house in Tijuana, authorities said. From there, the birds would be smuggled across the border.