Sick. Not only wild cats in small enclosures at home, but also ligers (hybrid). Truly, no morals whatsoever! This Former Cocaine Kingpin Is Lobbying Congress to Let Him Keep His Cheetahs (and Liger) Mario Tabraue Sr. was the Cuban American kingpin of a massive Miami cocaine empire. His palatial villa and ruthless multimillion-dollar drug syndicate evoked comparisons to Scarface. Tabraues 1989 trial featured testimony that hed once attempted to dismember the corpse of a federal informant with a machete. Now this 59-year-old ex-drug-lord, who spent more than a decade in prison, has gone from operating outside the law to attempting to shape it on Capitol Hill. Tabraue is quietly bankrolling a lobbying effort—mounted by a former Republican House staffer—to kill legislation that would crack down on exotic-animal parks, such as the one he currently runs on a five-acre ranch outside of Miami. Tabraues Zoological Wildlife Foundation (ZWF), a for-profit outfit that says its mission is to raise awareness about endangered species, has become one of the top destinations in South Florida for animal lovers in the 15 years it has been in business. Tabraues preserve boasts a collection of rare animals, including two-toed sloths, peregrine falcons, a snow leopard, and a citron-crested cockatoo. He even has a liger (a cross between a lion and a tiger). But a pending bill could put Tabraues operation—and others like it—out of business. The Big Cats and Public Safety Protection Act, first introduced in 2012 by Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.), would restrict the acquisition of big cats to accredited zoos and require private owners to register their animals. In response, Tabraue hired Frank Vitello, a former Republican staffer on the House Natural Resources Committee, to lobby against the legislation. Since 2013, the ZWF has paid Vitellos firm $80,000. McKeons legislation was motivated by a 2011 episode in which a Zanesville, Ohio, man released 56 exotic animals into the community before taking his own life. The animals, including 18 tigers and 17 lions, were on the loose for an afternoon as sheriffs deputies desperately tracked them through the countryside. Forty-eight animals were shot dead by local enforcement. To animal rights groups, this was a teachable moment that illustrated the dangers of a lightly regulated system in which almost anyone can possess exotic animals. The Department of Agriculture, which regulates exotic-wildlife exhibitors, currently has no oversight over people who simply keep lions, tigers, and cheetahs as pets, and accordingly law enforcement agencies have no way of knowing what and how many animals are being kept in the vicinity of the public. While a licensing process exists for people who want to display and breed big cats as a business venture, it amounts to a rubber stamp. Read full article at: motherjones/politics/2014/05/mario-tabraue-cocaine-kingpin-lobbying-congress-big-cats If you like it, please share it? ECSST (Endangered Cat Species Survival Trust) Homepage: ecsst.org Facebook: facebook/Endangeredcatspecies Twitter: https://twitter/ECSST777 Photographers group: facebook/groups/332219533550937/
Posted on: Tue, 13 May 2014 11:15:01 +0000
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