man who reportedly smuggled Giant African Snails into the U.S. so his followers could drink their mucus

man who reportedly smuggled Giant African Snails into the U.S. so his followers could drink their mucus is being investigated by state and federal wildlife agencies.
In January federal agents raided the home of Charles Stewart, 48, after they received several complaints. Stewart says his religion, Ifa Orisha, uses the snails in healing ceremonies. Some followers said however they got violently sick, lost weight and developed strange lumps in their stomachs after ingesting the snail mucus.
The Giant African Snail is prohibited in the U.S. without special approval. Experts say the snail, which can grow up to 10 inches, can devastate ecosystems; it eats more than 500 plant species, even plaster and stucco and can reproduce on its own.
For the last several decades, there was no known giant African snail in Florida. However, the state is no stranger to this massive mollusk. In 1966, a boy smuggled three snails into Miami as pets and his grandmother subsequently released them into her garden. Seven years later, more than 18,000 snails were found. It took almost 10 years and more than $1 million to eradicate this pest from Florida.
While not charged yet, Stewart could face a number of smuggling or customs violations in additional to civil penalties.

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