{"id":17275,"date":"2015-11-11T10:37:51","date_gmt":"2015-11-11T18:37:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=17275"},"modified":"2015-11-11T14:14:17","modified_gmt":"2015-11-11T22:14:17","slug":"man-who-admits-to-smuggling-two-arapaima-gigas-to-canada-facing-up-to-10-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=17275","title":{"rendered":"Man Who Admits to Smuggling Two Arapaima Gigas to Canada Facing Up to 10 Years"},"content":{"rendered":"

LOS ANGELES<\/span><\/h2>\n
\n

A man who was\u00a0recently extradited from Mexico admitted in federal court of illegally trafficking of the world\u2019s largest freshwater fish, two Arapaima gigas<\/strong>, to Canada.<\/p>\n

Isaac Zimerman,<\/strong> 66, who formerly resided in West Hills, plea guilty Tuesday to the smuggling charge, official said.<\/p>\n

In a plea agreement filed Monday, Zimerman admitted that he smuggled two Arapaima gigas to Canada.<\/p>\n

At the time, Zimerman knew that he was illegally exporting the fish because they are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and they could not be exported to another country without a CITES re-export permit, which he did not have.<\/p>\n

Zimerman was initially charged in 2009, along with his company, River Wonders LLC, and his wife, Leonor Catalina Zimerman.<\/p>\n

River Wonders also pleaded guilty this afternoon to attempted smuggling of 10 Arapaima gigas to a resort in the Bahamas.<\/p>\n

While Leonor Zimerman pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor offense in 2010, Isaac Zimerman fled the United States that same year after prosecutors filed additional charges alleging that he continued to illegally export fish while on bond.<\/p>\n

Special agents with the United States Fish & Wildlife Service tracked Zimerman\u2019s movements through Europe, to Israel and eventually to Mexico.<\/p>\n

On March 3, 2015, concluding a four-year manhunt, Zimerman was arrested near Metepec, Mexico.<\/p>\n

Zimerman had changed his appearance to avoid detection and arrest. Mexico extradited Zimerman in September.<\/p>\n

As a result of the guilty plea, Zimerman faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison when he is sentenced in February.<\/p>\n

Leonor Zimerman<\/strong> pleaded guilty in 2010 to a misdemeanor count of illegal fish trafficking.<\/p>\n

Officials said she was sentenced in 2011 to 21 months of probation and ordered to pay a fine of $1,500.<\/p>\n

The arrest of Isaac Zimerman concluded a four-year manhunt led by the United States Fish & Wildlife Service, which received assistance from the Mexico City attach\u00e9 of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement\u2019s Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the FWS Intel Unit, Interpol, the U.S. Department of Justice\u2019s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and the U.S. Department of Justice\u2019s Office of International Affairs.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

(Photo about\u00a0<\/strong>Arapaima gigas<\/strong>\u00a0 from Live Science.com)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LOS ANGELES A man who was\u00a0recently extradited from Mexico admitted in federal court of illegally trafficking of the world\u2019s largest freshwater fish, two Arapaima gigas, to Canada. Isaac Zimerman, 66, who formerly…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17283,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,3],"tags":[1684,1902,1903,1627],"class_list":["post-17275","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-home-main-slider","category-u-s-department-of-justice","tag-arapaima-gigas","tag-illegal-trafficking","tag-smuggling","tag-u-s-fish-and-wildlife-service"],"yoast_head":"\nMan Who Admits to Smuggling Two Arapaima Gigas to Canada Facing Up to 10 Years<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Man admits to illegal trafficking Arapaima gigas, two freshwater fish, and is facing up to 10 years.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=17275\" \/>\n<meta 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