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. ### 94-647