Guilty Plea In Worcester Turtle, Salamander Smuggling Case

WORCESTER, MA — A Worcester man is facing up to 20 years in federal prison for smuggling reptiles into Massachusetts from Hong Kong. Nathan Boss, 27, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to wildlife smuggling charges, and one charge of lying to federal investigators.

The affair began in November 2017, when Customs agents at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York found a package headed from Hong Kong to Oakham full of 24 newts, 20 of which turned out to be dead.

Investigators traced the package to Boss, and they later watched as he accepted more reptiles, including black-breasted leaf turtles and salamanders. Boss sometimes used the pseudonym "Shelton" when accepting the shipments, federal officials said.

Federal officials also discovered Boss was exporting some reptiles to Hong Kong and Sweden.

Boss eventually pleaded guilty to two counts of smuggling wildlife into the U.S., two counts of smuggling wildlife out of the U.S, and making a false statement to a federal agent. No sentencing date has been set yet.