Interrogate all you like — this defendant ain’t talking.
Federal prosecutors are suing 1,800 feet of boards and 11 doors, all of it made of almendro wood illegally imported from Nicaragua. What a civil suit refers to as “defendant wood” was seized from a Sterling warehouse in September. The suit is necessary as part of the process to seize and dispose of the lumber and doors.
The wood was brought into the country without a valid foreign “certificate of origin” as required by the Endangered Species Act, according to the suit, which was filed in federal district court on Wednesday by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stefan Cassella.
The suit refers to the owners as Wilbur Lee and Jill Jacqueline Thompson, though only the errant timber was actually listed as a defendant. Neither the Thompsons nor a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office could be reached for comment Thursday.
Almendro, or Dipteryx panamensis, is a tall, tropical tree known for its dense, hard wood.
The seizure of the wood was conducted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection based on regulations set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, said USDA spokeswoman Karen Eggert. The customs agency conducts 10 to 12 such seizures each year, she said.
