MELBOURNE, Australia
Johnny Depp’s wife, actress Amber Heard, has been charged for illegally bringing the couple’s dogs to Australia in an incident that led to the country’s agriculture minister warning that the terriers could be euthanized.
The Commonwealth Department of Public Prosecutions said Thursday that Heard faces two counts of illegally importing Yorkshire terriers Pistol and Boo into Australia and one count of producing a false document in May.
The charges carry maximum penalties of 10-years imprisonment and a fine of $102,000 and up to one-year imprisonment and a fine of $10,200, respectively.
A summons has also been issued for her to appear before a Queensland court Sept. 7.
Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce told reporters Thursday that he was not concerned that legal actions against Heard could be considered mean internationally.
“No, it’s not. The law is the same for everybody,” the Australian Associated Press quoted him as saying. “There is no preferential treatment here.”
Stressing that a rabies outbreak would be catastrophic, he warned of its possible impact on Australia’s “massive” wild dog population and bat population in many towns.
“We've got enough problems with them [bats], let alone if they became rabid,” he said.
The Australian cited a Department of Agriculture spokesperson as confirming the summons issued to Heard.
“All animals entering Australia must have an import permit, and have undergone relevant testing and health checks signed off by a government veterinarian from the exporting country to ensure pests and diseases from overseas are not brought here,” she said in a statement.
The dogs had been brought into Australia while Depp was based on the Gold Coast filming Pirates of the Caribbean 5: Dead Men tell No Tales.
Australia's ports and airports have some of the toughest screening measures in the world. The country has extremely tight biosecurity laws, given that much of its flora and fauna is unique, and some have no resistance to foreign disease or bacteria.
The quarantining of dogs is enforced very strictly as some have been found to carry rabies. The minimum period for animals entering Australia is 10 days.
