US federal prosecutors have charged Sunseeker International Ltd and its US subsidiary Sunseeker USA Sales with charges relating to the use of illegally harvested teak from Myanmar.
The charges follow on from an Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) report which stated that teak which had been traded in breach of the EU Timber Regulation had entered the the UK-based luxury yacht builder’s supply chains.
The EIA first exposed Sunseeker’s illegitimate use of Burmese teak in 2018 and subsequently formally reported Sunseeker’s US distributor to the US Department of Justice.
US prosecutors have now lodged two charges accusing Sunseeker International and Sunseeker USA Sales of violating the US Lacey Act, which prohibits the trafficking on wildlife and plant products in violation of US or foreign law.
Illegal teak imports
The charges allege Sunseeker used teak illegally harvested in Myanmar and imported in violation of UK law to construct yachts which were then sold and transported from the UK to the US.
In a statement, the EIA said these are the first US charges it is aware of related to illegal teak imports into the US since the 2021 military coup in Myanmar.
Since the coup, environmental crime, including the exploitation of Myanmar’s forests for timber, particularly teak has skyrocketed.
“The junta uses revenues generated from teak sales to prop up its illegal regime,” said the EIA.
“Consequently, the state-controlled Myanmar Timber Enterprise, which oversees all sales and exports of teak, has since been on the receiving end of sanctions from the EU, UK and US, effectively making all imports of teak from Myanmar illegal.”
Substantial fines and penalties
Sunseeker has previously faced the courts over its use of illegal teak imported from Myanmar.
In November 2024, Sunseeker International pleaded guilty to three criminal charges under the UK Timber Regulation for illegal timber imports into the UK, including ‘blood’ teak from Myanmar.
The company was fined £358,759.64 by Judge Jonathan Fuller KC at Bournemouth Crown Court.
If convicted of these latest charges, the boatbuilder could face substantial fines and penalties.
Investigation
“The case is among the highest-profile US actions to date involving luxury goods and Myanmar timber, signalling heightened scrutiny of supply chains which span sanctioned or high-risk jurisdictions,” concluded the EIA.
The Lacey Act allows for criminal enforcement when firms knowingly trade in products sourced in violation of foreign law.
The investigation was carried out by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement.
