Designer Nancy González pleads guilty to fur smuggling to the US

The Colombian designer Nancy Gonzalezextradited to the United States for smuggling leather goods made from the skins of exotic and endangered animals, pleaded guilty this Friday to three charges in a federal court in Miami (Florida).

The Department of Justice (DOJ) reported that Nancy Teresa González de Barberi, 70, pleaded guilty to two counts of smuggling and one of conspiracy for the illegal importation of designer bags made of alligator and python skin from Colombia to the United States.

Both species are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), of which both the United States and Colombia are signatories, the DOJ explained in a statement.

More news: Designer Nancy González faces three federal charges

The smuggling took place from February 2016 to April 2019. González was extradited to the United States on August 30 in an accusation that includes two other people and her company Gzuniga Ltda.

According to the Prosecutor’s Office, “The defendants asked friends, family and employees of González’s manufacturing company in Colombia to act as couriers and carried the designer handbags on their person or in their luggage while traveling on passenger airlines.”

Once the bags were smuggled into the United States, he adds, they were sent to González’s showroom in Manhattan, New York, “where they were displayed for high-end retailers to view and purchase for resale.” in their stores.”

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The average retail price of these “Nancy González” brand bags was over $2,000.

González designed exclusive products for celebrities such as Salma Hayek, Britney Spears and Victoria Beckham, among others, according to local media, and her name appeared in films such as ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ (2006).

Sentencing for González was set for February 5, 2024. The designer faces up to five years in prison on the conspiracy charge and up to 20 years in prison.n for each of the smuggling charges and possible fines of up to 250,000 for each charge.