• Calvin Bautista has been charged with trying to smuggle three Burmese pythons into Canada.
• The snakes were hidden under his pants at a border crossing between the United States and Canada.
• A conviction on this offence may result in a maximum term of twenty years in prison.

A guy from New York City has been charged with trying to smuggle three Burmese pythons into Canada under his pants at a border crossing between the United States and Canada. On July 15, 2018, Calvin Bautista, age 36, is suspected of being the person responsible for transporting the disguised snakes onto a bus that travelled into northern New York.

An international treaty and federal regulations both identify Burmese pythons as being “injurious to human beings,” which makes it illegal to import the snakes into the United States.

According to a press release issued by the office of the United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman, Bautista, who is from the borough of Queens, was arraigned on the federal smuggling charge on Tuesday in Albany and then released pending trial.

An email for comment was sent to the attorney representing Bautista.

According to federal prosecutors, a conviction on this offence may result in a maximum term of twenty years in prison and a fine of up to two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

One of the largest snakes in the world, the Burmese python, is designated an endangered species in its native Asia and is classified as an invasive species in Florida, where it poses a threat to native animal species.

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