Lumber Liquidators nets $13M fine, probation
Officials said firm lied about types of wood it was importing
A federal judge on Monday sentenced Lumber Liquidators to $13.15 million in penalties and five years of probation after the company acknowledged it was guilty of illegally importing wood from forests that are home to endangered species.
As part of the settlement reached in October, Lumber Liquidators will also accept additional oversight in the form of independent audits and an environmental compliance plan.
The penalties include $7.8 million in criminal fines, $3.15 million in civil forfeiture, nearly $1 million in criminal forfeiture and $1.2 billion in community service contributions, including payments to conservation nonprofits.
Lumber Liquidators sold products that were manufactured in China from wood logged in eastern Russia, where dwindling forests provide habitat for rare species such as Siberian tigers and Amur leopards.
The company accepted one felony charge of importing goods through false statements and four misdemeanors for violating timber laws in a foreign country and bringing that wood to the U.S.
“The case against Lumber Liquidators shows the true cost of turning a blind eye to the envi- ronmental laws that protect endangered wildlife,” Assistant Attorney General John Cruden of the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division said in a statement. "This company left a trail of corrupt transactions and habitat destruction. Now they will pay a price for this callous and careless pursuit of profit."
Among the violations, according to the government: Lumber Liquidators lied about the types of wood it was importing, including declaring Mongolian oak from Far East Russia to be Welsh oak and declaring merpauh wood from Myanmar to be mahogany from Indonesia.
The penalty includes $1.2 million in payments to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the USFWS Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Fund.
The payments will help fund development of a technological device that could help authorities identify wood types at import and export junctions.