Guilty verdict in narwhal probe

Here's the latest in the narwhal tusk smuggling :

Narwhal Tusk Trafficker Convicted of Conspiracy and Money Laundering
Feb. 14, 2014

BANGOR --- A New Jersey man was found guilty today by a federal jury in Bangor, Maine, of illegally trafficking and smuggling narwhal tusks, and associated money laundering crimes, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

  Andrew L. Zarauskas, 60, of Union,  was convicted of conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, smuggling and money laundering violations for buying narwhal tusks knowing the tusks had been illegally imported into the United States from Canada, as well as selling or attempting to sell the tusks after their illegal importation.

Authorities allege from 2002 to 2008, Zarauskas purchased approximately 33 narwhal tusks that he knew were illegally imported into the United States in violation of federal law. A narwhal is a medium-sized whale with an extremely long tusk that projects from its upper left jaw, often referred to as the unicorn of the sea. As marine mammals narwhals are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

It is illegal to import parts of marine mammals into the United States without the requisite permits and without declaring the items to U.S. Customs and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Narwhal tusks are commonly collected for display purposes and can fetch large sums of money.

According to evidence presented at the trial, Zarauskas conspired with others, including persons located in Canada, to illegally import the protected tusks for re-sale in the United States and to launder the funds used to purchase the narwhal tusks by transferring checks and money orders from New Jersey to Canada, intending that the money be used for further illegal imports of narwhal tusks.

On Jan. 7, 2014, Jay G. Conrad, of Lakeland, Tenn., who had been charged in the same indictment, pleaded guilty to conspiring to illegally import and traffic narwhal tusks, conspiring to launder money, and illegally trafficking narwhal tusks. On that same date, a plea agreement was also unsealed in which Eddie T. Dunn, of Eads, Tenn., pleaded guilty in the District of Alaska to conspiring to illegally traffic, and trafficking, narwhal tusks.

Throughout the conspiracy, Zarauskus and others made payments to the Canadian supplier for the narwhal tusks, by sending the payments to a mailing address in Bangor, Maine, or directly to the supplier in Canada, authorities said. The payments allowed the Canadian supplier to purchase and re-supply Zarauskus and Conrad with more narwhal tusks that they could then re-sell. Conrad sold between $400,000 and $1 million worth of narwhal tusks and Dunn sold approximately $1.1 million worth of narwhal tusks as members of the conspiracy.

US clamps down on tusk trade

Today, the U.S. government announced it will clamp down on the ivory trade, effectively halting commercial sales in response to global poaching concerns.

Below is a Department of the Interior explained on the ban:

The ban will impose new restrictions on the import, export, and commercial sale of elephant ivory withinthe United States,withsome limited exceptions. The limited exceptions include a narrow class of antiques that are exempt from regulationunder the EndangeredSpecies Act; and items imported for commercial purposesbefore international commercial trade in these species wasprohibitedunder the Conventionon International Trade in EndangeredSpeciesof Wild Fauna and Flora.

Anyone proposing to sell elephant ivory or rhino hornwould be responsible to document that they are exempt.The Service expects this to be a small fraction of the current domestictrade.

Anyone who currently owns legally obtained ivory may keep it.

The Service will:

Prohibit Commercial Import of African Elephant Ivory: All commercial imports of African elephant ivory,includingantiques,willbe prohibited.

Prohibit Commercial Export of Elephant Ivory: All commercial exports will be prohibited, except for bona fide antiques,certainnoncommercial items, and in exceptional circumstancespermitted under the Endangered Species Act.

Significantly Restrict Domestic Resale of Elephant Ivory: We will finalize a proposed rule that will reaffirm and clarify that salesacrossstate linesare prohibited, except for bona fide antiques,and willprohibit saleswithina state unless the seller can demonstrate anitem waslawfully importedprior to 1990 for African elephantsand 1975for Asian elephants,or under an exemption document.

Clarify the Definition of “Antique”: To qualify as an antique,anitem must be more than 100 years old and meetotherrequirementsunder the Endangered Species Act. The onus will now fall on the importer, exporter, or seller to demonstrate that an item meets these criteria.

Restore Endangered Species Act Protection for African Elephants: We will revoke a previous Fish and Wildlife Service special rule that had relaxed Endangered Species Act restrictions on African elephant ivory trade.

Support Limited Sport-hunting of African Elephants: We will limit the number of African elephant sport-hunted trophies that an individualcan import to two per hunter per year.

Winter rescue at Grand Teton

Rangers at Grand Teton National Park rescued a group of skiers who became lost in the park over the weekend.

Here's the National Park Service account of the operation:

 Lost Skiers Rescued during Major Winter Storm
Date: Feb. 10, 2014

   Three skiers unintentionally ended up in Grand Teton National Park's Granite Canyon backcountry on Friday, Feb. 7, prompting a search and rescue mission by park rangers the following day during a significant winter storm. Despite a high and rising avalanche danger, park rescuers successfully assisted the three out of the Teton backcountry by 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8.

Tom Barry, 59, of Jackson, Wy., Zoe Tong, 49, and Dave Catero, 52, from San Francisco, Calif., left the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort boundary from Gate 1 at about 11 a.m. on Friday with the intention of skiing an area called Four Pines, adjacent to the ski resort. The three mistakenly skied into Granite Canyon instead, and became lost in Grand Teton's more remote backcountry.

By 4 p.m. Friday, the three skiers realized they were lost, so they decided to dig a snow cave and stay put for the night. By Saturday morning, the group was out of food and water, and only one of them was carrying an avalanche transceiver. They decided to send a text message to a friend indicating they were lost and needed help.

Teton County Sheriff's Office dispatchers received the call for help, and notified park rangers at 8:30 a.m. The skiers were able to provide their location by GPS coordinates derived from their cell phone, and through a text message, rangers determined that no one in the party was injured. Due to high winds and low visibility, a helicopter reconnaissance and rescue was not possible, so rangers prepared for a ground-based rescue.

Rangers spent most of the day weighing options to help the trio while analyzing the risk to rescuers. With concerns that the three might not survive a second night in the backcountry, rangers ultimately decided to attempt a rescue. If rescuers had encountered signs of slope instability, or if the avalanche danger had been any higher, rangers would not have attempted the rescue. Ultimately, four park rangers departed the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort on skis at 4 p.m. Saturday and reached the party at 7:30 p.m. The group was then escorted out of the backcountry and back to the base of the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.

Rangers remind backcountry users and those who leave the ski resort boundary that a rescue is not guaranteed. Pursing these activities requires a high level of personal accountability and responsibility. All members of a backcountry party should have appropriate avalanche gear, including a transceiver, shovel, and probe. Backcountry skiers and snowboarders need to be prepared to spend more time than anticipated by bringing extra clothing, high energy snacks and water. They should also consider their physical limitations and time restrictions when choosing a destination, and bring a map of the area and know how to use it before setting out.

The Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center reported the avalanche danger as "considerable" to "high" on Saturday with increasing danger due to strong winds, warming temperatures and abundant new snow. It's important to note that the avalanche forecast center does not provide reports for extreme terrain.

This was the first major search and rescue in Grand Teton National Park this winter.