In a second case, a federal judge ordered San Ysidro resident Carlos Abundez to pay $74,330<\/a> for smuggling 14 sedated keel-billed toucans in the dashboard<\/a> of his Volkswagen Passat, the government said. Some of the birds suffered injuries, including broken tails and a broken leg.<\/p>\n The two cases provide the latest glimpse into a persistent problem plaguing the border: exotic birds \u2014 many native to Mexico or Latin America \u2014 being squirreled away deep inside vehicles or even a suspect\u2019s clothing.<\/p>\n (United States District Court Southern District of California )<\/p>\n The two cases provide the latest glimpse into a persistent problem plaguing the border: exotic birds \u2014 many native to Mexico or Latin America \u2014 being squirreled away deep inside vehicles or even a suspect\u2019s clothing. <\/p>\n In October, a Tijuana man was indicted<\/a> after officers found two emaciated and potentially sedated orange-fronted parakeets stuffed in his underwear<\/a>. In June, a 24-year-old was detained after officers found seven Amazon parrots<\/a> in a cardboard box on his passenger floorboard. Two months before that, authorities arrested a man after concluding he had smuggled six birds in his boots<\/a> and six more in his car \u2014 two of them dead.<\/p>\n Lawyers for Alonzo and Abundez did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n Mike Parr, president of the American Bird Conservancy, a nonprofit devoted to the conservation of bird habitat, said he is not surprised by some of the birds being trafficked. Captive parrots have become habituated to humans and popular with pet owners, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re decorative. They make good pets. They talk. People just have an affinity for parrots,\u201d said Parr, who also co-wrote \u201cParrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World.\u201d<\/p>\n Alonzo was arrested in May at the San Ysidro Port of Entry. Investigators found bags under the rear seat of his 2015 Dodge Durango containing the 17 birds, as well as three chickens, which were used as decoys to \u201cconceal the protected parakeets and parrots from detection by border officials,\u201d according to his plea agreement.<\/p>\n Many of the birds were extremely young. The two red-lored Amazon parrots died \u201cas a result of the difficult journey,\u201d the plea agreement said.<\/p>\n All three species of birds in Alonzo\u2019s car were protected and listed as part of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, prosecutors said. The surviving parrots and parakeets were sent to the Bronx Zoo, the agreement said.<\/p>\n Doug Ault, assistant director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service\u2019s Office of Law Enforcement, said Alonzo\u2019s actions undermined efforts to protect vulnerable bird populations, while also bypassing laws aimed at preventing \u201cthe entry of zoonotic diseases and other pathogens into the U.S.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis defendant used illegal smuggling practices that disregarded the laws of the United States, the lives of the birds he was smuggling, and wildlife within the United States,\u201d Southern District of California U.S. Atty. Adam Gordon said in a statement.<\/p>\n In his plea agreement, Alonzo admitted earning $40,000 for the sale of the birds. As part of his sentencing, he was ordered to pay the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service $3,262 to cover the care and quarantine of the parakeets.<\/p>\n Abundez, the other defendant, was apprehended in June 2025 at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. According to his plea agreement, he told the authorities he was heading to McDonald\u2019s and had nothing to declare.<\/p>\n During a search, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer found the 14 bound and sedated keel-billed toucans, including one duct taped under the car\u2019s dashboard.<\/p>\n Abundez was sentenced March 3.<\/p>\n![\"Criminal](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1777158248_177_.jpeg\")
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