Two Arrested in Years-Long Scheme to Smuggle Protected Reptiles Across U.S.-Mexico Border

SAN DIEGO - Georgina Bribiesca Chavez of Tijuana, Mexico, appeared in federal court today to face a wildlife trafficking charge after she allegedly participated in a years-long scheme to smuggle exotic reptiles into and out of the United States. Chavez's alleged wildlife trafficking partner, Salvador Pelayo of Chula Vista, was arrested in July and faces a similar federal charge for trafficking exotic wildlife.

Chavez was arrested last week while attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border with a vehicle containing dozens of concealed reptiles, including four venomous, yellow-blotched palm pit vipers; three caimans; one baby crocodile; and more than 60 other reptiles protected under international treaties because of declining populations worldwide.

According to court documents, on the morning of August 10, 2026, Chavez applied for entry into the United States at the San Ysidro Port of Entry. She told a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer that she had nothing to declare. While checking her identification, the officer discovered that Chavez had an outstanding arrest warrant related to a long-term wildlife trafficking investigation. She was taken into custody, and her vehicle was seized.

The following morning, CBP officers assigned to the seized-vehicle lot inspected Chavez's red Volkswagen. Inside, they discovered a concealed factory compartment behind the rear bench seat. The compartment contained pillowcases that had been knotted closed and sealed with tape. One of the pillowcases was moving. The officer called for backup.

Later that day, the pillowcases were transported to the San Diego Zoo for examination and handling. Zoo staff carefully opened the packages and discovered the 60 abronia lizards, four venomous yellow-blotched palm pit vipers, three caimans, one baby crocodile, and one indigo snake. Several of these species are protected under international treaties because of their endangered or threatened status.

Even after her arrest, Chavez never told CBP officers about the live animals in her car, leaving them abandoned for nearly 24 hours in the August heat in San Ysidro. All three caimans died before the San Diego Zoo could provide care. As of last week, the remaining animals were stable and remained under the Zoo's care.

"These animals were not cargo-they were living creatures subjected to dangerous conditions for profit," said U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon.

At today's hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Jill L. Burkhardt ordered Chavez held without bond pending trial. Chavez and Pelayo have both pleaded not guilty.

According to court documents, Chavez and Pelayo began working together to traffic wildlife into the U.S. to sell to American buyers in 2023. Investigators with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began an undercover investigation about 18 months ago, targeting their trafficking activity. Over the course of the investigation, Pelayo and Chavez were involved in several undercover buys of protected turtles and were surveilled by investigators sending and receiving wildlife at shipping centers around San Diego.

On one occasion in March 2025, as alleged in Chavez's complaint, undercover agents purchased four protected Mexican box turtles from Pelayo and their partner in Mexico; Chavez met the undercover agent in person to deliver the live animals just hours after she crossed the U.S.-Mexico border. The agent paid Chavez $2,600 cash in exchange for the turtles. After the undercover buy, the turtles were transferred to the Oakland Zoo for care and keeping, where they were identified as protected species native to Mexico. The turtles were in bad health, likely because they were caught in the wild and had contracted a respiratory disease. By May 2025, all four of the turtles had died.

On another occasion also in March 2025, as alleged in Pelayo's complaint, another undercover agent purchased four protected Mexican and Yucatan box turtles from their partner in Mexico to be shipped to New York. The turtles, which are native to Mexico, were smuggled into the U.S. On March 11, 2025, Pelayo used a fake name, "Jose Lopez," to ship a box containing the four turtles to the undercover agent in New York. The agent received the turtles the next day and transferred them to the Buffalo Zoo for care and keeping.

Pelayo and Chavez are believed to have trafficked exotic wildlife together for several years and court documents allege that they made tens of thousands of dollars in profits from the sale of those animals to buyers in the United States. According to court records, at times, they would buy protected wildlife that was sourced in the United States and export it to Mexico, where customers in Mexico would purchase the rare animals. Chavez was observed picking up Eastern box turtles native to New York at a shipping center in San Diego, which she smuggled into Mexico in the trunk of her red Volkswagen.

Chavez is due in court on August 27, 2026, at 9:30 a.m., for a preliminary hearing before Judge Burkhardt. Pelayo's next hearing is on October 2, 2026, at 10:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Cathy A. Bencivengo.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of California and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are members of the Department of Justice's Trade Fraud Task Force, a cross-agency law enforcement effort that also involves the National Fraud Enforcement Division, the Criminal and Civil Divisions, the Energy and Natural Resources Division, the Department of Homeland Security, and U.S. Attorney's Offices nationwide. The Task Force was created to leverage all of the Department's tools and authorities to prevent trade fraud that deprives the government of vital revenue, threatens critical domestic industries, undermines consumer confidence, and weakens national security. The Task Force is designed to pursue enforcement actions against parties who seek to evade tariffs and other duties, as well as smugglers who seek to import prohibited goods into the American economy. The Justice Department encourages whistleblowers to alert the government to credible allegations of fraud, including utilizing the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act or through the Criminal Division's Corporate Whistleblower Program at [email protected] using the form available here.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily W. Allen for the Southern District of California.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Office of Law Enforcement is investigating this case with assistance from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

DEFENDANTS

Salvador Pelayo, Case No. 26-mj-4326-DDL Age: 28 Chula Vista, CA

Georgina Bribiesca Chavez, Case No. 26-mj-4598-JLB Age: 66 Tijuana, Mexico

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Lacey Act Trafficking - Title 16, U.S.C., Sections 3372(a)(1) and 3373(d)(1)(B)

Maximum penalty: Five years in prison and $250,000 fine

INVESTIGATING AGENCY

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service