Lobster Kingpin Burman Sentenced in Illegal Seafood Scheme

POMPANO BEACH, FL – Eric Burman, 60, of Boca Raton, has been sentenced to three years of probation and slapped with a $250,000 fine for his role in a black market lobster operation that illegally shipped Florida spiny lobster to China. The sentence, handed down by Senior U.S. District Court Judge James Lawrence King, concludes a case that exposed a deliberate scheme to skirt regulations and profit from poached marine life.

Burman, formerly President and sole Director of a Pompano Beach-based Florida corporation, was found guilty of conspiracy to violate the federal Lacey Act. The charges stem from actions in August and September 2010, when Burman and a co-conspirator allegedly purchased spiny lobster from harvesters in Monroe County without proper documentation. The pair bypassed the requirement to issue trip tickets to harvesters and the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission, effectively operating outside the law.

Court documents reveal a calculated effort to conceal the illegal activity. The co-conspirator transported the undocumented lobster to Burman’s Pompano Beach facility, where it was packaged and shipped to Hong Kong, China, under the guise of Burman’s legitimate corporate entity. The operation involved multiple airfreight shipments, meticulously detailed in “overt acts” presented as evidence, showcasing a pattern of unlicensed and undocumented purchases in the Florida Keys.

The $250,000 fine won’t line Burman’s pockets; it’s earmarked for the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act Fund, administered by the Department of Commerce, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration. This ensures the penalty directly contributes to the conservation efforts the defendant flagrantly disregarded. The fair market value of the illegally trafficked lobster exceeded $350.00, triggering the federal charges under Title 16, United States Code, Sections 3372(a)(2)(A), 3373(d)(1) and (2).

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer and Tracy Dunn, Special Agent in Charge of NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement, jointly announced the sentencing. The investigation was a collaborative effort, also involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Islamorada Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Watts-FitzGerald and Antonia Barnes prosecuted the case, demonstrating a commitment to cracking down on illegal wildlife trafficking.

This case serves as a stark reminder that exploiting marine resources for profit, while dodging legal oversight, carries serious consequences. The Grimy Times will continue to track federal prosecutions and expose those who prey on our natural resources. Further details and court documents can be found on the websites of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida (http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls) and the District Court for the Southern District of Florida (http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov).