Posted originally on the OGD:

From: Marianna Max


George had a visit from the plant police who confiscated all of his
computer files. He was left with no way to contact his customers while
they go over his computer so he would like it if you all would email him.
Please pass this on to anyone who might not already know. I'll let him
explain what happened in his own words.


Howdy Buckeroos,


Well, here's the story and pay attention, you might be next!


Tuesday morning about 10 am, 6 armed agents of our government served
me with a search warrant and proceeded to ransack my house, special
emphasis on my office. Seems this is an investigation into a possible
violation of the Lacey Act. In looking up the Lacey Act, I find that
it pertains to the Importation or Shipment of Injurious Mammels,
Birds, Fish (including mollusks and crustacea) Amphinia and Reptiles.
It outlines the penalties for anyone engaged in shipping to the
United States, Herpestes auropunctatus which seems to be a certain
species of Mongoose. It also prohibits trade to the U.S. of any wild
animals, birds, fish, mollusks, crustacae, amphibians, reptiles or
their offspring or eggs of anything the Secretary of the Interior may
prescribe as injurious to humans, agriculture, horticulture, forestry
or wildlife resources of the U.S. It further goes on to repeal the
Black Bass Act of 1900????????


Also included now by the Lacey Act Amendment of 1981, they have
vaguely added "plants", not anything specific like maybe orchids or
cactus but just "plants".


The Feds or as I like to call them, The Plant Gestapo seems to think
something was wrong with the Phrags. I sold from Peru in August even
though they are listed as I-D on the CITES from that country and
legally qualified for this designation by the government of Peru. The
documents were passed by U.S. Customs and satisfied the USDA and
those plants were inspected and sent on to me as released by the
government.


Somehow the Plant Gestapo was able to convince a U.S. Federal
Magistrate by taking parts of emails out of context, to issue a
search warrant. After 3 hours and 45 minutes, they boxed up 20 big
cartons of all my office stuff, emails, correspondence, files,
catalogs, floppies, fishing pictures and personal stuff, took my CPU
from my computer and left. They read me my Miranda Rights, searched
my greenhouse and said I was not being charged with
anything.........yet!


So I am now without computer with any addresses or business
information and can not contact my customers and friends except
through this Forum. I am still kicking and apparently going to take a
months vacation from business whether I like it or not. It will be at
least that long before I get my computer back as it is on it's way to
a forensics lab in Oregon to be nuked. Let me assure y'all that they
are just fishing for something...anything and they won't find nuttin.


I have always obeyed the laws, my plants are all legal and they won't
find anything except some really terrible jokes on my computer.
Please bear with me during this period. We are getting plants in but
have no mailing list to send price lists out to so we will just grow
them out. I have email now on Kathy's computer but can only answer
emails as I have no one's address. The "FREE THE OLD WRANGLER DEFENCE
FUND" is not set up yet but we'll let you know later. Please feel
free to write me and ask questions, I have nothing to hide and I
think now the Feds know that.


Good growing to you all and watch who you let in your house.


GN