The Kingpin

December 21, 2009 11:39 AM

An exposé of the world's most notorious wildlife dealer, his special government friend, and his ambitious new plan.

Photo Gallery and more info.

posted by gman (17 comments total)

Print Version (which unfortunately loads up the print menu)
posted by gman at 11:46 AM on December 21, 2009

Fascinating article. Thanks.
posted by jckll at 12:13 PM on December 21, 2009 [1 favorite]

What a piece of shit.

(I will admit I'm a softie for critters...just buried a cat I found on the side of the road this morning.)
posted by notsnot at 12:17 PM on December 21, 2009 [2 favorites]

May he rot in hell, soon, because the single most depressing line in this article was, "Since his release [in 2003] he's had only one brush with the law."

Poor tigers.
posted by bearwife at 12:24 PM on December 21, 2009

I'm just shocked that people can get these exotic animals as pets when everyone knows they are illegal. No one needs a chimp, tiger, or bear. I refuse to go to the circus because I just don't think a bear wants to be in a tutu dancing on a ball.
posted by stormpooper at 12:36 PM on December 21, 2009

...he signed plea agreements, admitting to crimes carrying a maximum penalty of 250 years in prison and a $12.5-million fine. On June 7, 2001, U.S. District Judge Martin J. Jenkins sentenced him to 71 months in U.S. federal prison...

This is why we can't have nice things.
posted by coolguymichael at 12:48 PM on December 21, 2009 [2 favorites]

I wonder how he would look stuffed and mounted?
posted by scruss at 1:36 PM on December 21, 2009

I wonder how he would look stuffed and mounted?

I was about to ask how much his gall bladder would fetch on the open market.
posted by hangashore at 1:43 PM on December 21, 2009

The last picture in the series makes me fume.
posted by thebigdeadwaltz at 2:53 PM on December 21, 2009

Instead of wasting our time trying to kill Osama Bin Laden couldn't we put some effort into offing this guy?
posted by notreally at 3:07 PM on December 21, 2009

...he signed plea agreements, admitting to crimes carrying a maximum penalty of 250 years in prison and a $12.5-million fine. On June 7, 2001, U.S. District Judge Martin J. Jenkins sentenced him to 71 months in U.S. federal prison...

I really would like to know what the explanation for this is.
posted by Mitrovarr at 4:50 PM on December 21, 2009

Driving species to extinction is like torching the Louvre or MOMA. These are a priceless heritage we have in trust. 250 years in prison and $12.5 million is too mild.
posted by binturong at 5:27 PM on December 21, 2009 [1 favorite]

Wow, those pictures are terrible. I owned a rescued blood python for several years and seeing them skinned en masse like that is just awful.
posted by rollbiz at 6:44 PM on December 21, 2009

binturong: Driving species to extinction is like torching the Louvre or MOMA.

Yeah, if we were fundamentally incapable of ever creating another painting.

I have less than no sympathy for this guy and any of his customers.
posted by Mitrovarr at 9:53 PM on December 21, 2009

I wonder if there's even a non-violent way to stop this stuff? In the face of big money, people will do almost anything, and they don't have much regard for the natural world to begin with.
posted by sneebler at 8:14 AM on December 22, 2009

or a violent way would be fine as well.
posted by reidfleming at 2:58 PM on December 24, 2009

The general lack of interest in this thread is a bit disconcerting. I suppose James Cameron's Avatar is more interesting than the plight of the denizens of this planet. What else are we missing?
posted by sneebler at 7:18 PM on January 14, 2010