Nature 3M inc. - conviction information for 2017-01-20
| Corporation name: | Nature 3M inc. |
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| Address: | 943 Saint-Cyrille Street |
| City: | Normandin |
| Province/territory: | Quebec |
| Postal code: | G8M 4H9 |
| Country: | Canada |
| Sector or industry: | 114 - Fishing, hunting and trapping |
| Location of offense: | 943 Saint-Cyrille Street, Normandin, Quebec |
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| Case summary: |
NATURE 3M INC., based in Normandin, in Quebec’s Lac-Saint-Jean region, specializes in taxidermy and tanning services, as well as the production of clothing and goods made from furs and animal parts.
On or about 8 August 2013, the company shipped a polar bear pelt, fashioned into a stuffed rug and bearing seal 12-13QC0075, to British Columbia. This pelt had been illegally distributed in Quebec, violating section 53 of the Act Respecting the Conservation and Development of Wildlife (R.S.Q., c. C-61.1), thereby committing an offence under section 7(2) of the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (S.C. 1992, c. 52), punishable by indictment or summary conviction, as outlined in section 22.
NATURE 3M INC. had obtained the pelt from an unlicensed intermediary engaged in the illegal trade of raw furs in Quebec. Legally, fur traders can only acquire raw furs in two ways: directly from hunters or trappers selling their own catch, or from licensed traders or intermediaries.
To conceal this illicit transaction, the company falsely recorded in its fur trader register that the pelt had been purchased directly from an Indigenous hunter in Quebec, in violation of section 19.2 of the Regulation Respecting Trapping and Fur Trade, which is derived from the Act Respecting the Conservation and Development of Wildlife.
The investigation was conducted in collaboration with the Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs du Québec. |
| Charges: |
Count 1
Between 16 Apr 2013 and 8 August 2013, in Normandin, Roberval district, and elsewhere in Quebec, NATURE 3M Inc. shipped from the province of Quebec to British Columbia all or part of an animal, specifically a polar bear skin-bearing seal 12-13QC0075, which was taken, possessed, distributed, or transported in contravention of the laws or regulations of the province, namely the Act respecting the conservation and development of wildlife (R.S.Q., c. C-61.1), thereby contravening section 7(2) of the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (S.C. 1992, c. 52), and committing an offense punishable by summary conviction as set out in section 22(1)(a)(i) of the said Act. |
| Enforcement notification: | Illegal transport of polar bear skins from Quebec |
| Result: | Guilty (Court Decision) |
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| Date of conviction: | 2017-01-20 |
| Court level: | Provincial and Territorial Court |
| Nature of offense(s): |
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| Additional details about the nature of the offense: | Transporting animal, plant or derivative taken or derivative thereof from province to another contrary to provincial law. |
| Act | Regulations | Section(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act | 7(2), 22(1)a)i) |
| Date of sentencing: |
2017-01-20 |
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| Location of sentencing: | |
| Sentence(s): |
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| Amount of fine(s): | $5,000 |
| Sentencing details: |
On 20 January 2017, NATURE 3M Inc. was found guilty before the Court of Quebec of illegally exporting a polar bear pelt from Quebec to British Columbia, contrary to the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act. At the time of sentencing, NATURE 3M Inc. was imposed a fine of $5,000, which had to be paid to the Environmental Damages Fund of Canada.
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