Man faces up to 20 years in prison after the three live snakes were illegally shipped from Hong Kong and mailed to his California address
A man has been arrested on federal smuggling charges after customs officers intercepted a shipment with three live king cobras hidden inside potato chip canisters that were being mailed to his California home, US prosecutors said.
Rodrigo Franco, 34, was scheduled to be arraigned on Tuesday afternoon in Los Angeles on a charge of illegally importing merchandise. It was not immediately clear if he had an attorney who could comment on the allegations.
The three king cobra snakes, each about two feet (just over half a meter) long, were found in March when Customs and Border Protection officers inspected a package that was mailed from Hong Kong, prosecutors said. There were also three albino Chinese soft-shelled turtles in the package, authorities said.
Federal agents removed the cobras but delivered the turtles to Franco’s home in Monterey Park.
