FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                 ENR
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1994                (202) 616-0189
                                       TDD (202) 514-1888
                             
CALIFORNIA MAN RECEIVES TOUGHEST WILDLIFE
SENTENCE EVER
FOR STEALING ENDANGERED SPECIES IMPORTANT TO 
TO ALZHEIMERS AND PARKINSONS RESEARCH


     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A Long Beach, California, man
has received the toughest sentence ever handed out for
violating federal wildlife laws after he smuggled and sold a
large portion of the world's known supply of Mexican red-
kneed tarantulas, a highly endangered species that could hold
a key to curing Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.  U.S.
District Court Judge Manuel L. Real imposed a stiffer sentence
than required under the federal sentencing guidelines because
Cook's actions may contribute to the extinction of the
species.

     The Justice Department announced that Stephen Earl
Cook was sentenced on November 7 in Los Angeles to serve
eight years and nine months in prison for smuggling into the
United States and selling approximately 600 Mexican red-
kneed tarantulas, valued at a total of more than $120,000. 
Cook's sentence is the most severe ever imposed for a
violation of U.S. wildlife laws.  
     The red-kneed tarantula is highly endangered, and is used
by scientists in the effort find a cure for Alzheimer's and
Parkinson's diseases.  It venom is being studied for the
mechanism that enables it to enter the brain so quickly.

     "This case illustrates another very good reason to bring
the full force of law to bear in protecting endangered wildlife,"
said Lois Schiffer, Assistant Attorney General for Environment
and Natural Resources.  "These tarantulas may hold the clue
to curing two fatal diseases.  The illegal trade could wipe out
this important research, along with the species itself."

     Cook was convicted by a federal jury in Los Angeles on
June 16, 1994 on five counts of smuggling and selling the
tarantulas. Cook is a longtime reptile dealer who bought the
spiders for $3 apiece from a tarantula hunter in Colima,
Mexico, the only area where the creatures are found.

     Cook concealed the tarantulas inside a suitcase and
drove them across the U.S. border without declaring them to
any U.S. agency, as required by law.  In Long Beach, Cook
sold the tarantulas to reptile dealers and friends.  The retail
value of the tarantulas in the United States is $200-300 per
spider.  Cook's activities removed a significant portion of the
remaining population of these tarantulas from their wild
habitat.  
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