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Sydney man jailed for mailing reptiles in popcorn bags

Neil Simpson received the longest Australian wildlife smuggling sentence for attempting to export 101 native reptiles hidden in 15 packages to multiple countries.

  • On Tuesday, Neil Simpson, 61, Sydney man, was sentenced to an eight-year jail term with a non-parole period of five years and four months.
  • Between 2018 and 2023, Neil Simpson attempted to export native reptiles to Hong Kong, Romania, South Korea and Sri Lanka, breaching federal offence rules on regulated species without permits.
  • Searches uncovered 101 live lizards, skinks and dragons secured in calico bags and concealed inside popcorn packets, biscuit tins and a handbag.
  • Federal environment officials said the record eight-year term was a record for wildlife smuggling, three other individuals convicted after Simpson used them to post packages, and a department spokesperson said the trade is cruel and harms biodiversity.
  • Seized species included shingleback lizards, Western blue-tongue lizards and spiny-tailed skinks, while the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water said partners use advanced scanning technologies at border points to intercept concealed animals.
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26 Articles

PerthNowPerthNow
+2 Reposted by 2 other sources
Center

Record jail sentence for attempted reptile smuggler

An Australian man has been hit with a record jail sentence after attempting to smuggle hundreds of live reptiles across the world.

·City of Perth, Australia
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Watauga DemocratWatauga Democrat
+17 Reposted by 17 other sources
Lean Left

Sydney man jailed for mailing reptiles in popcorn bags

A Sydney man who tried to post native lizards, dragons and other reptiles out of Australia in bags of popcorn and biscuit tins has been sentenced to eight years in jail, authorities said Tuesday.

·Calhoun, United States
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·Vienna, Austria
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  • 40% of the sources are Center, 40% of the sources lean Right
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KULR-TV broke the news in Billings, United States on Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
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