SAN DIEGO (AP) — Customs officials say they seized 343 pounds of sea cucumbers at a San Diego border crossing as smugglers tried to bring the Asian culinary delicacy into the U.S. from Mexico.
Inspectors found the undeclared sea cucumbers Sunday afternoon in a minivan at the San Ysidro port of entry.
Customs and Border Protection spokeswoman Jackie Dizdul says the oblong marine animals were hidden in the luggage of two Chinese citizens, a 51-year-old man and his 24-year-old son.
The two were fined $15,264, and their U.S. visas were canceled.
Dizdul says all imported food must be declared, especially large quantities intended for commercial use.
Sea cucumbers are eaten in soups in Asia, where they are harvested from the ocean bottom and dried. They go for about $45 per pound in the U.S.
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