Miami Men Charged for Stealing Marine Life from Florida Keys Sanctuary

An investigation into the illegal trade of protected marine life called “Operation Rock Bottom” has netted two Miami men accused of illegally selling live rock from the Florida Keys.

Prosecutors say Robert V. Kelton and Bruce Brande allegedly conspired to sneak live rock out of the Florida Keys National marine Sanctuary, later reselling it on at least two occasions for thousands of dollars.

The first sale reportedly took place in February 2008, when Felton and Brande shipped $4,300 worth of live rock to Wisconsin. Some of the rocks had been tagged with tracking devices by federal agents, according to the Miami Herald.

Three years later, Brande and Kelton reportedly falsified an invoice, claiming an illegal shipment of rocks from the protected Keys was legally imported from Haiti. 

Kelton operated as president of a business called D.R. Imports Inc., where Brande was employed as a general manager, according to assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas A. Watts-FitzGerald. 

The case will be heard by U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez at the Key West federal courthouse.

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