![crocodile](https://leaders.ng/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/image-65-678x381.png)
A man who was caught with meat from a threatened species of crocodile at the Calgary International Airport earlier this year has been fined $7,500.
On Sept. 20, Adeleke Abubakar Ali-Ibironke pleaded guilty in the Alberta Court of Justice to one count of unlawfully importing a species of animal without obtaining the required permits.
Ali-Ibironke arrived in Calgary on Feb. 26 and did not declare any food or animal products.
A further investigation by the Canada Border Services Agency discovered six pounds of meat products in his luggage, officials said.
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Subsequent testing identified the meat as an african dwarf crocodile, which is classified as a threatened species.
Ali-Ibironke was charged under the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act(opens in a new tab), a piece of legislation created to protect Canadian and foreign species of plants and animals from exploitation.
African dwarf crocodiles have been listed as a Level 1 species at risk under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) since 1995.
According to CITES(opens in a new tab), commercial trade in these species is generally not allowed.
The fine will be paid to the Government of Canada’s Environmental Damages Fund.