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Defendant Sentenced for Smuggling Protected Baby Spider Monkeys
SAN DIEGO – In a federal court hearing, Sarmad Ghaled Dafar of Houston, Texas was sentenced to four months in custody and 180 days home confinement for his role in trafficking six protected baby Mexican Spider Monkeys. Dafar was also ordered to pay $23,501.70 in restitution for the cost of quarantining three of the monkeys at the San Diego Zoo.
According to admissions in his plea agreement, Dafar coordinated the purchases and smuggling of the monkeys across the border, received them in the U.S., and arranged for their sale on three occasions in June 2022 and August 2023. The crime was discovered on August 14, 2023, when U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service interdicted three baby Mexican Spider monkeys being smuggled into the United States through the Calexico West Port of Entry by Dafar’s coconspirator.
A search of the coconspirator’s phone led to evidence that the monkeys were being smuggled for Dafar. Additional evidence revealed that Dafar had previously arranged to have at least three other baby Mexican spider monkeys smuggled into the United States from Mexico in June 2022 and July 2023. The fate of those three monkeys remains unknown.
“This crime ripped weeks-old baby monkeys from their mothers, disrupted fragile ecosystems, endangered a vulnerable species, and posed significant public health risks,” said U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon. “This is not merely an economic crime; it is a severe and lasting injury to both wildlife and public safety. Border security is not just about interdicting drugs and preventing illegal entries. It also involves protecting the public from dangerous diseases. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service contributes to securing our borders and keeping the public safe.”
The defendant was ordered to surrender on or before May 29, 2025. Baby Mexican spider monkeys continue to nurse throughout their first year and ordinarily are not fully weaned and independent until they turn two. Most baby Mexican spider monkeys will continue to stay close to their mothers until they are approximately four years old.
Dafar’s Facebook messages show that he intentionally sought baby monkeys to make the smuggling process easier. According to the government’s sentencing papers, on August 6, 2023, a Facebook user sent Dafar a news article about U.S. Border Patrol agents who “found several spider monkeys during a smuggling attempt in Brownsville[, Texas].” Dafar responded, “I see it. He stupid brin[g] to[o] many of[] them and all adults they make a lot noise and they active. Baby’s most be sleeping and small to hide.” Photos that Dafar sent via Facebook show how young the baby monkeys were.
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Wildlife Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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