A Chula Vista man pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to illegally importing $3 million worth of abalone out of Mexico, using phony labeling that prevented authorities from tracing the origin of the heavily regulated sea creatures.
Yon Pon Wong, 65, admitted that he imported shipments of the marine mollusks 43 times between February 2012 and July 2015, doing business as Lucky Co. and using commercial invoices that falsely identified the seller at a bogus address in Tijuana.
The crimes involved a total of roughly 148,500 pounds of abalone, court documents state.
The laws of Mexico — where abalone is a highly restricted fishery — require that commercial invoices include sufficient information to allow for tracking of seafood to its lawful origin, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego.
As part of his plea, Wong agreed to forfeit $500,000 in proceeds from the illegal importation.
Wong will face up to five years in prison at his sentencing, scheduled for Nov. 20.
–City News Service