PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (WSVN) — A man was allegedly caught stealing 107 turtle eggs on a Jupiter Island beach, Friday night.
Five days before the arrest, Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission biologists reported possible egg poaching of a Loggerhead Sea Turtle nest on a beach behind a Jupiter Island home, between West Palm Beach and Port St. Lucie.
FWC patrols said they then caught 49-year-old Glenn Shaw in the act, Friday night, taking 107 eggs. Officials said he was taking the eggs from a female Loggerhead turtle as she was laying them.
Shaw was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail with a third-degree felony. He could face up to five years in prison and fines up to $5,000.
Officials said 15 of the eggs were kept as evidence and for DNA testing, while the remaining 92 eggs were re-buried so that they may hatch later this year. Officials are still investigating the motive behind the egg thefts.
FWC Captain Jeff Ardelean said in a statement, “We’d like to thank FWC biologists for keeping a close eye out and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for their assistance with this case. Protecting Florida’s natural resources is something we take seriously, and we’re thankful that this individual was prevented from doing further harm to this imperiled species.”
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