USFW seized my elephant tusks today. They say the Zim export permit did not have a stamp on each page of a three page permit. Has anybody on AR dealt with this and can offer advice?

Tom

Shame. I sure hate to hear these stories.

Pity. I would talk to John Jackson with Conservation Force, www.conservationforce.org

Who handled the export paperwork in Zim?

Seriously, this is getting ridiculous. Yes, John Jackson is fighting the good fight, but what can we do? I don't see myself bringing in CITES animals soon, but I can't stand to watch it happen to others. I've worked on a Lacey Act case before and may have another case coming up, but it's all domestic, interstate stuff that most AR members would not like. Once again, what can we do to help? Membership in DSC and SCI helps provide funds, but is that enough?

What port did they come in at?

Who was the exporter in charge of the paperwork in Zim?

Who did you use to clear your stuff over here?

Ouch, that is awful.

As stated above, I would get a hold of Mr. Jackson.

If you are a SCI member, contacting the national office is also something that may be useful.

A third thing to try, which would be a long shot is see if you can get your US rep and Senators involved, sometimes they can get difficult problems to go away.

Good luck, this does not sound pretty.

I'm very sorry to hear of this. Did you not have the option to send it back instead of seizure? Hopefully, something can be done to reverse this action.

Tom,

I feel the heartache. I had the same unfortunate experience 3 years ago. Luckily, it ended well. PM sent with my contact info.

FYI, Mr. Jackson was involved, but was not at all instrumental in getting the tusks released.

Good luck

Jack

Thanks for the responses. Mike, I called John Jackson's office-he is in Alaska and receptionist said he would call when he get our message. Taxidermy Enterprises did some work, Maple freight did "freight forwarding" and Spherical Freight sent the shipment to SA and Delta. Frostbit, the shipment was seized in Portland, Or. and "Always at your Service" is the customs broker. crbutler, I have my Senator involved-maybe he can do some good. I am not his supporter, however, so I hope they don't check that out. He is an Obama supporter so we do not have much in common. Todd, they did not give me the option of sending the tusks back. USFW are not helpful.

Tom

Thanks Jack. I will hook up to see how you did it.

Tom

I wonder if anyone like Mr. Jackson tracks which ports do the most "seizures". I bet it isn't uniformly applied nationwide.

Twoseventy, you are quite calm considering everything. If anything can be done, please let "US" help.

This is bad news.

I'm not sure what the short term implications are. For example can the trophies be held safely while the shortcomings in the paperwork is rectified? Or is seizure supposed to be irreversible? Sorry, excuse my ignorance.

If that is the case I would go back to your outfitter in Zim and the guys who took care of the exports for you on that side. They are generally helpful where they can be and if it's a few outstanding stamps and all was above board I'd guess they could arrange that in pretty short order.

Best of luck.

yet another taxidermy enterprises horror story. i wonder what would happen, if anything, if a bunch of use would get together and contact our reps. and demand changes in the usfw

Tom,

You probably received something called a "NOTICE OF SEIZURE AND PROPOSED FORFEITURE" letter. On page 2 there are 4 options for you to follow. What you want to do is file a petition for remission. That will give you the time to sort out and replace the paperwork.

Working in the system was the key to clear my tusks. But it takes the coordination of your freight forwarder and parks department in Zim.

A new CITIES permit with the proper "whatever" needs to be sent by ZimParks received by the USF&W. This process will take months. The key is to make sure you have someone on the ground in Zim who can communicate directly with the issuing person at parks.

I have some contact info for you, as well as a sympathetic ear. I know just how devastating this can be. But it can be worked out.

Look forward to helping in any way I can.

Jack

I had an issue several months ago with a shipment of tusks, although not a “paperwork” problem like yours, but perhaps my experience will be of some value to you in resolving your issue. When the shipment was received and inspected by an agent from USFW at JFK, a “dead rodent” was found in the crate and a nest in the cavity of one of the tusks. The USFW agent called the CDC. I got a call from the CDC stating that the tusks need to undergo disinfection otherwise they would be destroyed. I contacted John Meehan at Fauna & Flora in NYC (my expeditor), and he got right back to me that he was aware of the issue and was working with the various agencies to make sure the trophies were not destroyed. I stayed in contact from the agent from the CDC striving to work within their structure/protocol, she was understanding and identified their requirements. John handled things, which was basically to setup a containment area where the tusks could be fumigated, transport the crate and packing materials to a facility that would incinerate and document, and make a new create for transport of the tusks. Once this was accomplished, Customs completed the “Intensive Exam” and the shipment was released. I don’t think I would have been able to handle this without John’s assistance, especially given the proximity (I am in PA). Had I tried to work with my local taxidermist to perform this, the costs I am sure would have been a lot higher than the couple hundred bucks John charged, and the process a lot longer/painful. It was actually refreshing that it all worked out as well as it did.

I would suggest as Jack states above, lean on your expeditor and the responsible parties in Zim. Keep cool, and good luck.

The trophy could be exported back to Zim to undergo the proper paperwork?

Ultimately this is the blame of the exporter who needs to work diligently to get things sorted out.

On a side note I have heard countless compliments about John Meehan.

Its the bugs coming across the Mexican border that need to be contended with, not a dead rat, and what the hell has a dead rodent got to do with the destruction of the ivory? - fumigate the consignment and that's the end of it.

quote:

Originally posted by fairgame:
The trophy could be exported back to Zim to undergo the proper paperwork?

Andrew, unfortunately no. The bureaucracy would need the non existent CITIES permit to export. Since they are currently in our country "illegaly" no export permit is possible.

quote:

Ultimately this is the blame of the exporter who needs to work diligently to get things sorted out.

You are spot on. The exporter needs to work within Zim Parks to issue a new, compliant permit. That is a straitforward process. Once the new permit is issued issued, the USF&W should allow import.

Update on trophy shipment. I went to Portland to pick up the portion of the shipment that had completed permit. (custom bases, soft gun cases, painted ear and buffalo cape and skull and hyena flat skin. The USFW guy said he would allow the improperly permited stuff to be sent back and re-shipped with correct paper work. As fairgame suggested and Jack commented, I do not know how this is to be accomplished. My customs broker says they may be able to ship it back since it is still "in transit". Maple Freight and emailed that they would pay for the freight. At this point it seems every one is being helpful and willing to accept responsibility for the error. I will keep you guys posted.

Tom

Tom, I am so glad to hear USFWS is working with you. I'm sure it is a hassle to send it back but what a relief! Here's hoping it all works out for you!

Todd

Why does everyone blame USFWL??!!! USFWL is doing their job and again, the docs appear to not have been reviewed before it was exported.
The clearing agent should have noticed the missing stamp BEFORE submitting to USFWL because then, you would have had a fighting chance to start the process over again by having the elephant sent back to the country of origin. Once the clearing agent submitted the filing into USFWL with the incorrect docs, it is out of EVERYONE's hands.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Safari Specialty Importers:
Why does everyone blame USFWL??!!!QUOTE]

Please tell me you are kidding???...

Jeff

quote:

Originally posted by Safari Specialty Importers:
Why does everyone blame USFWL??!!! USFWL is doing their job and again, the docs appear to not have been reviewed before it was exported.
The clearing agent should have noticed the missing stamp BEFORE submitting to USFWL because then, you would have had a fighting chance to start the process over again by having the elephant sent back to the country of origin. Once the clearing agent submitted the filing into USFWL with the incorrect docs, it is out of EVERYONE's hands.

It was clearly one export permit, but three pages long. One of the four signers only stamped and signed page three. The intent was to endorse the permit, not just page three, but USFW will not see intent but only minutia. They are correct but not useful. The export facilitators in Zim said they will pay to have the stuff shipped back and done correctly. I take them at their word for now. I will let you know how it shakes down.

Tom

NO, we are not kidding. You must remember that USFWL is only an enforcer of the CITES treaty and rules of import. That is why it is vital that someone takes the responsibility who crosses every 't' and dot every 'i'. Of course you will have the occasional difficult inspector and knows which ports have a better caliber of inspectors but you have nothing to worry about when your paperwork is correct. Alot of what happens just snowballs out of control when no one knows what to do! It's mostly common sense.

quote:

Originally posted by Safari Specialty Importers:
NO, we are not kidding. You must remember that USFWL is only an enforcer of the CITES treaty and rules of import. That is why it is vital that someone takes the responsibility who crosses every 't' and dot every 'i'. Of course you will have the occasional difficult inspector and knows which ports have a better caliber of inspectors but you have nothing to worry about when your paperwork is correct. Alot of what happens just snowballs out of control when no one knows what to do! It's mostly common sense.

Great then you must be just to guy to talk to to get my Polar Bear which was legally harvested and permitted in April 2008. Also I am sure you could have prevented the ambivilance of the USFWS that refuses to clarify it's stance on how legally harvested and permitted leopards are to be accounted for by the country. That way I would not be waiting for a SECOND CITIES permit to be issued when the stuff should have been able to be shipped a year ago.

Damn, I hate to hear these stories especially when I have a shipment including leopard and elephant getting ready to be shipped any day.

quote:

Originally posted by Safari Specialty Importers:
Why does everyone blame USFWL??!!! .

I used to work for the "Carp and Coot". I could give you a long list why folks blame the USFWL.

I feel your frustration.I'm going to safely assume that there is no customs broker working for you and a situation like what you described yes, could have been avoided if there was a relationship with USFWL that would have lent itself to better assistance from them. Florida has a very challenging USFWL port. That being said, again they are only enforcing the rules. This is why it is critical that you have an agent who specializes in hunted trophies and is in tune with these government agencies. USFWL is only one...you still have USDA, CDC and ultimately the Customs Inspectors to contend with also. Remember, if these USFWL regs were not enforced, then anyone could bring in anything at any time thereby promoting POACHING.

quote:

Originally posted by Safari Specialty Importers:
I feel your frustration.I'm going to safely assume that there is no customs broker working for you and a situation like what you described yes, could have been avoided if there was a relationship with USFWL that would have lent itself to better assistance from them. Florida has a very challenging USFWL port. That being said, again they are only enforcing the rules. This is why it is critical that you have an agent who specializes in hunted trophies and is in tune with these government agencies. USFWL is only one...you still have USDA, CDC and ultimately the Customs Inspectors to contend with also. Remember, if these USFWL regs were not enforced, then anyone could bring in anything at any time thereby promoting POACHING.

What do either one of the above mentioned situations with the Polar Bear and Zambian Leopard have to do with a customs broker?

A Custom Broker is licensed by the US gov.They will be the one to review all Export & import docs and file them with USFWL,CDC,Customs,
& USDA. They are the go between you and these municipalities.

I heard of all the line 11a garbage coming down the line and had my wifes leopard held in South Africa until proper tags could be attached and all quota/year/animal numbers could be properly filled out. It took SA 8 months to change the stamps but once it was done and all paperwork was pre checked by usfws personell I had it shipped with no problems. The only country that will not work with sportsmen on re-issuing tags is mozambique so I quit hunting there. I've already had one friend loose his croc thanks to mozambique. However you do have options. As stated before once USFWS contacts you and tells you they are denying your trophys entry you can elect to have them shipped back and you can re-do the paper work. If you don't do this then your trophies are permanently seized and will be destroyed. I don't know if yours is from the same problem but the greenies found the loophole in line 11a and they are running with it. SCI has an official letter out on this if you guys are interested in hearing more. However this tusk issue may be totally different. Guess I will find out in a few months when I get done with my own zim hunt. Wish me luck

It is entirely possible that Safari Specialty Importers is suggesting that if you use them for importing, you will not have any problems.

You are spot on! We are the only ones that effectively provide trophy importing services that goes beyond just literally clearing when it arrives in the US. This is not only a business, but as a hunter, this is a passion. Our dedication to this mission, including recoveries, is what led us to clearing the Trump brothers of all allegations.

quote:

Originally posted by Safari Specialty Importers:
You are spot on! We are the only ones that effectively provide trophy importing services that goes beyond just literally clearing when it arrives in the US. This is not only a business, but as a hunter, this is a passion. Our dedication to this mission, including recoveries, is what led us to clearing the Trump brothers of all allegations.

It must have been shear luck that mt leopard I shot in 2011 in Zim arrived safely to my taxidermist in Houston. It could have not been due to the multiple emails to and from my agent and the Zim exporter, checking and rechecking the paperwork, photos of the tags, etc, etc.

What allegations did you clear the Trumps? The media crucified them, Johnny Rodrigues (anti-hunter) who has no legal standing in Zim "launched" an investigation? I do remember a letter from Zim Parks that said the hunt was 100% legal.

See attached NY Post Article on 3/28:
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/b...8UfWq9aDBqVMm8smyqgM
You will see we obtained the letter from Zimbparks due to our relationship with Mr. Chadenga.
We are here to help those that want help. We are the only importers who 'import' and 'recover'. Clearing is just a small piece of the puzzle and when all is in order BEFORE leaving Africa or country of Export, then there are no serious issues. Period. It is that simple and we are here to let everyone know this. That's all.

If you guys are batting a thousand on importing game trophies with no problems, what is your fee? Is there a written warranty?

Post the letter.

quote:

Originally posted by twoseventy:
If you guys are batting a thousand on importing game trophies with no problems, what is your fee? Is there a written warranty?

Google is your friend.....

http://safarispecialtyimporters.com/Pricing.html

John Jackson, of Conservation Force emailed me requestiong all
the paper work. I am not sure how that would help at this point in
the kerfuffle(is that a real word?). Maybe it will be useful as a piece
of evidence to get laws and regs changed.