A MAN was jailed for his role in illegally keeping up to 600 reptiles in a landmark case in Victoria.
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The Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) initiated the proceedings under the Wildlife Act, which resulted in an immediate jail term for the first time.
Magistrate Pauline Spencer sentenced the accused to four months’ jail in Dandenong Court recently.
The accused, 41, has lodged an appeal.
Another man, 33, has also been charged.
DELWP wildlife officers searched properties at Pakenham and Frankston in August 2015.
DELWP statewide manager, Regulation and Compliance, Glenn Sharp, said the sentencing brought more than two years of intensive effort to fruition.
“This sends a strong message,” he said.
“The hundreds of pythons and bearded dragons we seized had been bred in captivity by the accused, who deliberately in-bred species to create ‘desirable’ mutant traits in the reptiles.”
The reptiles included two Parsons Chameleons and two Crested Geckos. They were euthanased to reduce the disease risk posed to native wildlife.
