Expand / Collapse search
Watch TV
Menu

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2024 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

New York

6 arrested in illegal goose intestine import scheme

Suspects also accused of illegally transporting duck blood, intestines from China

Associated Press
Published
close
Fox News Flash top headlines for March 5 Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for March 5

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

Six people were arrested in New York on Tuesday on charges of illegally importing goose and duck intestines from China, in some cases by hiding them under packaged rattlesnakes or mislabeling them as pet grooming products on customs forms, federal officials announced.

The scheme, which also included illegal imports of duck blood and hawthorn fruit, involved transporting the restricted food items from China to California and then on to New York, where they were sold to customers, including restaurants, authorities said in a complaint filed Monday.

NYC MAN SCREAMING ABOUT KNIFE, HOLDING MOTHER IN CHOKEHOLD SHOT DEAD ON NYPD BODYCAM

The six, who were expected to appear in federal court in Brooklyn later Tuesday, are charged with importing, storing and selling hundreds of pounds of illegal food items between August 2022 and May 2023. Messages seeking comment were sent to their attorneys.

Packaged snake meat

Packaged snake meat, part of a shipment containing illegal imports of duck and goose intestines, is shown in November 2022. (US Attorneys Office, EDNY via AP)

Federal law prohibits importing any raw poultry products from China, and hawthorn fruit from China is also restricted, the authorities said.

According to the complaint, 1,966 cartons of goose and duck intestines were shipped in August 2022 from China to the Port of Long Beach, where they were identified as nail clippers and other pet grooming products on customs forms.

The cartons were dropped off at Los Angeles International Airport and flown to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York via a major U.S. air carrier's cargo service, federal officials said.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Another shipment of illegal poultry products in November 2022 was incorrectly labeled as frozen seafood, and some of the restricted items were concealed under packages of dead rattlesnakes, the authorities said.