JUNGS PLEAD GUILTY TO FEDERAL CHARGES OF EQUINE VIOLATIONS

                                    Dianne Smith (202) 720-6915
                                           diannes@oig.usda.gov

JUNGS PLEAD GUILTY TO FEDERAL CHARGES OF EQUINE VIOLATIONS

     WASHINGTON, December 7, 1998--U.S. Department of Agriculture Inspector
General Roger C. Viadero announced today that Emil Bernard and Anna Nicole
Jung pled guilty before a federal judge in Richmond, Va., to three counts each
of false statements and mail fraud.  The couple, who reside in Germany, owned
and operated Locksley Farms, Ltd., doing business as Locksley Farms, a large
equine facility in Millwood, Va.  Emil Jung also entered a guilty plea for the
business.

     According to Viadero, the Jungs were indicted in May 1998, by a federal
grand jury in Charlottesville, Va.  The indictment charged that the defendants
falsified dates of birth for horses imported from Germany into the United
States.  By doing so, they avoided quarantine and testing of the horses for
Contagious Equine Metritis (CEM).  The United States is free of CEM, which is
a highly contagious venereal disease.  The Jungs avoided paying the costs
associated with quarantine and testing, approximately $5,000 per horse, which
is the responsibility of the importer.

     When imported into the United States, any sexually mature breeding mare
or stallion, defined as a horse over 731 days old, is required to be
quarantined and tested for the CEM virus.  Veterinarians in Germany certify
certain information regarding all horses exported to the United States,
including their dates of birth.  The certification is attached to United
States customs documents and used to determine whether the horse is subject to
quarantine and CEM testing.

     The Jung's Virginia operation consisted largely of the importation of
Holsteiner, Hanoverian, and Oldenberger warmblood horses from Germany.  The
horses were usually shipped from Germany into the United States through New
York or California.  They were then brought to the couple's Virginia facility,
where they were sold.  The horses were primarily used in international jumper
and driving competitions and were valued from $17,000 to $500,000.

     The Jungs each face up to 15 years incarceration and a fine of $750,000. 
In their plea agreement, they agreed to forfeit their Millwood, Va., farm, in
lieu of the forfeiture of approximately $345,000 in proceeds. 

     This investigation was conducted by USDA's Office of Inspector General
and Investigative and Enforcement Services of USDA's Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service.  "The successful prosecution of this case was made
possible by the cooperation of these offices,"  Viadero said.  "These joint
efforts allow us to protect the nation's crops and animals from foreign
infestations and
disease."

     This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney for the Western
District of Virginia.

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