Japanese sentenced in Ecuador for trying to bring home insects

May 10, 2019

Sao Paulo-A Japanese man was sentenced to two years of imprisonment in Ecuador on Thursday for trying to leave the country with unauthorized insect specimens.

The man, 26, was also slapped with a fine and ordered to post an apology advertisement on a local newspaper.

The defense is expected to appeal the ruling, according to local media.

The man was arrested on March 12 at an airport in Quito, the Ecuadorian capital, after authorities found 371 specimens of beetles, spiders and other insects in his bag during a security check. He did not have the authorizations to bring out of the country 248 of the specimens, which included endangered species.

Ecuador strictly regulates the exportation of its endemic species, which it considers to be "the nation's genetic assets."

The Japanese national was on his way back to Japan after traveling in Ecuador since March 1. He works at a forest for research use in the town of Ashoro, Hokkaido, northernmost Japan, belonging to Kyushu University.

"I've loved catching bugs since my childhood and my hobby is to collect insects. I wanted to see Ecuador's nature with my own eyes," the man said in the trial. "I don't speak English nor Spanish, so I did not understand well about permissions to bring out (the insects)."

"I apologize for causing great trouble to Ecuador", he said. Jiji Press