SWC owner charged!

Jason is not taking all of the blame for illegal importing. He is taking the blame for his own individual actions.

Some people get away with crimes, others get caught. That is just part of the nature of law enforcement, you can't catch everyone. Those that do get caught need to be dealt with appropriately.

 

Update July 14

Well here's a forward on this very sad topic:

Local media outlets have reported that Jason Daeninck, the owner of Salt Water Connection on Henderson Highway, has been convicted of smuggling protected coral rock, sea horses and giant clams into Canada from Indonesia. Sentencing is now in progress.



Jason is well-known to many of us as a long-standing member of Winnipeg’s aquatic community. He is also a sponsor of the Winnipeg Fish Forum Forum, which is owned by the Aquarium Society of Winnipeg, and has sponsorship advertising and communications privileges on our site.



As a club, the Aquarium Society of Winnipeg (ASW) believes in respect for all forms of aquatic life and its protection. Clearly, it is not the responsibility of the ASW to police its members or their businesses. However, the courts have determined that Jason Daeninck is guilty of actions that are fundamentally against the values of the Aquarium Society of Winnipeg. Therefore, we cannot continue to accept his patronage as a sponsor of the Winnipeg Fish Forum at this time. His material will be removed from our website immediately and his sponsorship money will be returned. He will also lose membership privileges from the ASW for the foreseeable future.

ASW executive committe

 

Well maybe his potential $900,000 fine will make those others think twice.

 

Unfgortunately these things dont deter anyone. These stories usually end up inspiring a bunch of half arsed people to do the same thing. Look at Bank Robbers, Murderers, etc.. We have capital punishments inline for those that do this, But it gets done on a daily basis with no thought or remorse. As long as profit is to be made, laws will sadly be broken.

I am assuming the whole attraction to the black market collection may not simply be illegal corals, But i am assuming with the chain of command of CITES and the legal process, It ends up being cheaper to get it illegally.

 

I sorta got the impression this guy was not devious but at the most far to cheap to pay fees and terrifs.

 

Cute....his testimony was that 20,000 lb of indo rock was for a fence he was building at home. Why not make it out of dinosaur bones or something equally ridiculous. Def seems like a dodgy character.

 

Scleractinia & aragonite are used world wide for building fences and barriers, even right here in the US. And yes, it is imported for that purpose as well. The definition of Scleractinia isn't what you think it is I suspect.

 

people make mistakes, and it appears he did, i have to go by my dealings with him and he was incredibly nice and took care of the problem i had with my skimmer. .. i wish him well and i wouldn't hesitate to deal with him again.

 

But, from Indonesia? It's not like it was from the Bahama's. The major issue was the source not really the use. I never saw evidence of the fence being built.

More info on the sentencing:
Coral Smuggling: Jason Daeninck Should Have To Pay For Display Of Coral He Brought To Canada
Stiff penalty sought for importing marine life - Winnipeg Free Press

 

Not sure if you have ever been to Winnipeg, but there aren't many coral fences there