7 People Charged For Trafficking Flying Squirrels To Asia, FWC Says

Seven people face charges in connection to a flying squirrel trafficking operation, the Associated Press (AP) reported. Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) announced Monday (October 19) that poachers set as many as 10,000 squirrel traps in Central Florida over a three-year period. The goal was the capture as many as 3,600 flying squirrels, drive them to Chicago and ship the animals to South Korea. Flying squirrels are a protected species.

The poachers sold the squirrels to a licensed wildlife dealer who claimed they were bred in captivity and not wild, the agency said. "Buyers from South Korea would travel to the United States and purchase the flying squirrels from the wildlife dealer in Bushnell. The animals were then driven in rental cars to Chicago, where the source of the animals was further concealed, and the animals were exported to Asia by an unwitting international wildlife exporter," according to FWC.

The Florida dealer made over $213,000 for selling the animals, the agency added. "The international retail value of the poached flying squirrels is estimated to be more than $1 million," AP noted. FWC got a complaint about illegally trapped squirrels, which launched the investigation back in January 2019. The seven suspects in custody face a total of 25 felony charges, including racketeering, money laundering and scheming to defraud. A seventh person remains a fugitive, and more arrests are expected, according to the agency. "These poachers could have severely damaged Florida’s wildlife populations,” Major Grant Burton said, who leads the Florida wildlife commission's investigation section.

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