Couple Sentenced for Cross-Border Protected Wildlife Trafficking

Linh Luu and Kevin Le of Anaheim pleaded guilty to violating the Lacey Act and were sentenced to three years of probation and fined $10,000 each. Prosecutors said they processed $51,100 in payments from 2019 to 2021 trafficking protected wildlife parts between Oregon and Vietnam, including bear gallbladders, cougar bones, lion teeth, rhinoceros horns and a tiger pelt, and lacked required permits. During a 2020 undercover operation the couple accepted $12,000 toward a rhino-horn sale, discussed evading banking safeguards and each later received nearly $5,000. The horn segment was shipped to Oregon disguised as a household decoration. Prosecutors said the transaction was intended to build trust for larger deals. Contested: no outlet disputes these core facts. Any next steps are not in the record.