Overview

• Sarmad Ghaled Dafar, 33, was sentenced to four months in prison, 180 days of home confinement, and ordered to pay $23,501.70 in restitution for smuggling six baby Mexican spider monkeys.
• The crime was discovered in August 2023 when U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials interdicted three baby monkeys at the Calexico West Port of Entry.
• The three intercepted monkeys were quarantined at the San Diego Zoo due to zoonotic disease concerns and later rehomed at Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo.
• Investigators uncovered Facebook messages showing Dafar sought baby monkeys because they were easier to smuggle and hide, with photos revealing their premature separation from mothers.
• The whereabouts of three other monkeys smuggled in 2022 and 2023 remain unknown, highlighting ongoing concerns about wildlife trafficking and conservation efforts.