Louisiana Men Sentenced For Alligator Egg Theft
Only in Louisiana right? Two Grand Chenier men found how just how serious the trouble are in after they were caught with over 500 alligator eggs in July of 2015.
48-year-old Paul Canik and 25-year-old Christopher Trahan recently found out just how expensive poaching alligator eggs can be.
Adam Einck with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries explained to the Louisiana Radio Network the specifics of the case.
There were a couple of men collecting alligator eggs from property from which they did not have the required permits or the permission to be on that property.
What Agent Einck is saying these guys were on a property where they didn't belong and they were stealing. That's bad enough but the objects they were pilfering were a crime against all of us who appreciate Louisiana's unique outdoors and the creatures that live there.
They were actually found with 523 alligator eggs. So we then issued them citations at that time, and we seized the alligator eggs from them.
The two men realizing they were truly caught with their hands in the cookie jar plead no contest to the charges. Canik pled no contest to illegal possession of alligator eggs and criminal trespass. Trahan pled no contest to different charges of not abiding by rules and regulations.
Authorities with LDWF said that Canik actually took the eggs and Trahan transported them.
They were actually found with 523 alligator eggs. So we then issued them citations at that time, and we seized the alligator eggs from them.
The sentences that a state judge handed down were rather significant in this particular case. Trahan was ordered to pay a $293 fine. Canik’s egg collection privileges have been suspended for 18 months, and he was issued a $593 fine.
He also had to forfeit over $1,700 from the sale of the illegally taken eggs, and he also had to forfeit his 18-foot aluminum boat with the motor and trailer as well.