ALBANY, NY –
A New York City man who admitted smuggling three Burmese pythons in his pants across a U.S.-Canadian border crossing was sentenced Wednesday to a year of probation and a $5,000 ($6,745) fine, said the Federal Prosecutor’s Office.
Calvin Bautista, 38, crossed northern New York with the hidden snakes on a bus from Montreal to New York City on July 15, 2018. The young adult snakes were hidden inside his pants in snake bags attached to the pants. Drawstring.
They were discovered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents, according to court documents and a news release from U.S. Attorney Carla B. Freedman.
According to court documents, the Queens resident purchased the snakes, valued at more than $2,500, from a reptile store in Canada.
The importation of Burmese pythons is regulated by an international treaty and U.S. federal regulations that classify them as “harmful to humans.”
The Burmese python, one of the world’s largest snakes, is considered an endangered species in its native Asia and is invasive in Florida, where it threatens native animals.
Bautista’s attorney had no comment.
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