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Plant Protection Today: A Florida

Couple is Successfully Prosecuted for

Lacey Act Violations

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PPQ’s Lacey Act Declaration Data Helps Build the

Case for Illegal Plywood
By April Dawson

Last month, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the successful criminal

prosecution and sentencing of a Florida couple and their employee in violation of the

Lacey Act and customs law. Noel and Kelsy Hernandez Quintana pleaded guilty and

were both sentenced to close to 5 years in prison for illegally importing and selling

between $25 million and up to $65 million worth of plywood products. 

They were ordered to pay approximately $42 million in forfeitures and an additional

$1.6 million to cover storage costs incurred by the government when the Quintanas

declined to abandon seized illegal wood, thus forcing the government to maintain

the wood in storage pending resolution of the case. The couple’s employee, Marta

Angelbello, was also detained and sentenced in relation to the case, receiving 3

years of probation with 90 days of home detention and a fine of $3,000.

The Lacey Act Team was first enacted in 1900, to combat trafficking of illegally

taken wildlife, fish, or plants. In 2008, Farm Bill brought about amendments that

strengthen protections to a broader range of plants and plant products, making it

unlawful to import certain products without an declaration. This might be considered

one of the harshest judgements since the Act was amended. After the prison

sentence, the Quintanas are required to serve three years of supervised release

following their prison sentences, during which time they are prohibited in engaging

in businesses importing or exporting products protected under the Lacey Act. 

The Lacey Act Team, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Plant Protection

and Quarantine (PPQ) program, supported the investigation and prosecution. They

provided Lacey Act declaration data related to these imports and subject matter

expertise on declaration interpretation to both the DOJ and to U.S. Department of

Homeland Security investigators. The declarations provided the evidence pattern of

the case, showing the illegality of the plywood and the intent to circumvent the

Lacey Act and customs laws. 

“The Lacey Act declaration is an important document that supports legal trade of

timber and plant species,” said Karen L. Williams, Lacey Act Compliance Specialist.

“In fact, the illegal timber trade is a $150 billion a year global problem and the third

largest international crime. Compliance with the Lacey Act is good for the

environment and good for law-abiding U.S. businesses. We are happy to share

declaration information with our enforcement partners in support of investigations of
illegal harvest or false declarations.”

Lacey Act importations are required for formal entries of all types of wood and

products containing plant material, including plywood, charcoal, musical

instruments, and essential oils. Learn more about the Lacey Act and how it relates to

plants and plant products by visiting PPQ's  website. For further questions, please

contact APHIS Lacey Act program staff at lacey.act.declaration@usda.gov. To find

out which plants and plant products require a declaration, go to the Lacey Act

website and select Implementation Schedule.