Woman charged with jabbing a sea turtle nest with a wooden stake is back in jail
A Michigan woman charged with disturbing a sea turtle nest earlier this month in Miami Beach was back in jail Tuesday, records show.
Yaquin Lu, 41, was arrested Monday after being caught at the airport for trying to go to Panama, according to her attorney Frank Quintero Jr. He said there were also issues with her bond.
But Quintero said the ticket was booked before she was arrested and that there was no court order in place prohibiting her from traveling.
The Chinese citizen, who was out on a $75,000 bond, was expected to face a judge Wednesday.
Lu was originally arrested June 15 and charged with molesting or harassing marine turtles or their eggs.
Bystanders and officers said they saw Lu using a wooden stake to jab a sea turtle nest — which was in a closed-off area — and then stomped on it with her feet. Wooden stakes along with yellow tape are used to block off the are in the 500 block of the beach.
Under the U.S Endangered Species Act of 1973 and Florida statutes it is illegal to harm or harass sea turtles, their nests or hatchlings. The department at the time said the eggs were not harmed.
Lu was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center with no bond.
This story was originally published June 25, 2019 at 7:34 PM.
