Reading Man Enters Plea In Wildlife Trafficking Case, Prosecutors Say

READING, MA — A Reading man has pleaded guilty to trafficking in wildlife parts from endangered and protected species, according to a statement from federal prosecutors.

Adam Bied, 40, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to smuggle goods into the U.S., specifically, illegally imported wildlife parts, and two counts of violating the Lacey Act, which prohibits trafficking in wildlife.

Bied agreed to forfeit more than 100 wildlife parts, including orangutan skulls, tiger skulls, jaguar skin, and other parts from endangered, threatened, and protected species, prosecutors said.

From 2018 to 2021, Bied bought, sold, and traded in wildlife parts and products from threatened and endangered species. He placed orders with dealers in Cameroon and Indonesia who were in the businesses of killing and acquiring wildlife, including endangered and protected species, according to prosecutors.

He then resold or traded the wildlife to customers in the U.S.

Among the products that Beid imported were skulls of baboons, chimpanzees, pangolins, orangutans, and leopards.

He is scheduled for sentencing April 2.