Oregon Man Pleads Guilty Over 'Chocolate' Box Filled With Live Scorpions
By Zuri Anderson
March 16, 2022
An Oregon man has pleaded guilty this week to illegally trading live scorpions with domestic buyers in another country, according to KVAL.
Darren Dennis Drake, 39, of Eugene is accused of "illegally importing and exporting hundreds of live scorpions" with contacts in Texas, Michigan and even Germany, an U.S. attorney for Oregon alleges. Prosecutors claim U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found a package full of these creatures and falsely labeled "chocolates."
"Between September 4, 2017, and March 21, 2018, Drake imported and exported dozens of live scorpions from and to contacts in Germany without first obtaining an import-export license from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)," according to court documents. "Drake also mailed or received several hundred live scorpions from other U.S. states, including Michigan and Texas, in violation of federal mailing laws."
No word on what Drake and the buyers planned to do with the scorpions, or if others will face charges in the scheme.
Reporters say Drake waived indictment in a Medford court and pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to commit Lacey Act violations, which is a federal misdemeanor. He faces a maximum one-year prison sentence, a $100,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.
His sentencing is scheduled for June 22.