Canadian turtle smuggler receives nearly 5 years in prison

(AP) — A Canadian man who repeatedly entered Michigan to buy and ship thousands of turtles to his native China only to be caught with 51 of them strapped to his legs was sentenced Tuesday to nearly five years in federal prison for smuggling.

Ahead of the hearing, Xu wrote a letter to U.S. District Judge John Corbett O'Meara, saying he sold turtles partly to make money for college.

Xu was not a "sophisticated international dealer," defense attorney Matthew Borgula told the judge, adding that hiding turtles under his pants was "not a good way to get them across the border."

O'Meara could have gone lower than the guidelines, but settled on 57 months without an explanation, though he praised Xu for becoming fluent in Spanish while in prison and helping Hispanic inmates.