Rare gecko thieves sentenced today

The two men who admitted stealing rare geckos will be sentenced in Christchurch today.

Swiss stockbroker Thomas Price and Mexican chef Gustavo Toledo-Albarran pleaded guilty earlier this month to taking and possessing protected wildlife from Otago.

They have been in custody and are expected to join their co-offender Manfred Bachmann in jail today.

Bachmann was sent to prison for 15 weeks at the beginning of the month for his part in the theft of the rare jewelled geckos, just 12 hours after entering the country. The geckos were estimated to have a street value of nearly $200,000.

The thefts have prompted Conservation Minister Kate Wilkinson to review wildlife laws.

- NEWSTALK ZB