False Import Declaration Yields $1+ Million in Fines and Duties

The Department of Justice reports that a U.S. importer has pleaded guilty to violating the Lacey Act by making false import declarations regarding timber used in wooden cabinets and vanities. The Lacey Act requires importers of wood products to file a declaration that describes the scientific genus and species, as well as the harvest country, of imports that contain timber.

According to a DOJ press release, between January and May 2020 the company at issue imported five shipping containers of cabinets and vanities made with wood that was harvested and produced in China but was declared as a false species of wood harvested in Malaysia.

The DOJ states that the company was sentenced to pay $360,000 in fines and serve three years of probation, during which time it will be required to implement a mandatory environmental compliance plan audited by a third party. Further, the company paid more than $850,000 in outstanding import duties and its cabinets and vanities were seized by the Fish and Wildlife Service and donated to a local branch of Habitat for Humanity.