A McComb resident, Jeffery Budziszewski, was sentenced on January 8, 2026, to one year of federal probation and fined $3,000 for violating a federal wildlife law. Court documents state that Budziszewski, age 66, possessed and sold three-toed box turtles in violation of Mississippi law. He exported the turtles to New York where they were repackaged and sent to China, actions that contravened federal regulations.
The Lacey Act prohibits the export, transport, or sale of wildlife in interstate or foreign commerce if such activities violate state or foreign laws. Three-toed box turtles are native to the Mississippi River Valley and face population threats from illegal trade and other factors.
Mississippi classifies three-toed box turtles as needing management. State law forbids selling or transporting these turtles for profit without a commercial captive propagation permit. Authorities determined that Budziszewski bred these turtles in captivity and sold them without the required permit. Between June and July 2020, he exported several turtles from Mississippi to an individual in New York who then shipped them to Hong Kong.
United States Attorney J.E. Baxter Kruger commented: "My office is firmly committed to safeguarding America’s wildlife. The illegal trafficking of three-toed box turtles is precisely the kind of conduct the Lacey Act was designed to prevent. We will continue to enforce the Lacey Act and ensure that those who exploit protected wildlife, undermine conservation efforts, and place profit over the rule of law are held fully accountable.”
Doug Ault, Assistant Director at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Office of Law Enforcement said: "Three-toed box turtles are an important part of Mississippi’s natural heritage, and their removal for illegal trade puts the species at serious risk while undermining conservation efforts. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will continue to pursue every link in these trafficking networks to protect vulnerable species from further decline. We will not allow profiteering to jeopardize our native wildlife."
The case was investigated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bert Carraway.
