Ex-Zoo Boss In Federal Cross Hairs

Lex Salisbury, who ran Lowry Park Zoo before resigning under fire in December, is trying to sell two zebras through an animal trading magazine even though he doesn't hold the license the federal government requires for such transactions.

Salisbury, in fact, has never held the license, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, raising new questions about animals he bought, sold or traded for his personal Dade City ranch and his side business, Safari Wild, an exotic-animal park.

Anyone who is a zoo manager would have to know the laws, said Jessica Milteer, a USDA spokeswoman in the Washington area. "That's what we expect."

Milteer said this week that the department will investigate.

Licensing can be stringent and expensive, requiring proper caging, veterinary care and documentation. Licensing fees are based on a percentage of profit from animal sales, and owners are subjected to random inspections.

Salisbury is asking $7,500 for a pair of "quiet, breeding age zebras" in the Indiana-based Animal Finder's Guide. The date on the ad is Feb. 15.

He declined to be interviewed for this story.

Lowry Park Zoo has a federal license to exhibit animals, but the USDA said this week that it looked into the zoo in 2008 when a Tampa Tribune investigation revealed Salisbury had bought, sold or traded more than 180 animals with the zoo.

The department took no enforcement action.

In the fall, Salisbury did try to obtain a license for Safari Wild in Polk County, but the agriculture department never granted the license.

He Has Other Problems

Lowry Park Zoo's board forced Salisbury to resign in December after a city audit found he took more than $202,000 in animals and supplies from the zoo, in part to help build the for-profit Safari Wild. Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio has called for a criminal investigation.

The leader of an animal rights group said Salisbury should be prosecuted for selling the zebras without a license and for what she called his egregious violations as zoo director.

"Clearly, this is part of an ongoing act of lawlessness," said Melissa Gates, managing director for the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida.

When a Department of Agriculture investigation turns up a violation of licensing requirements, a warning is issued.

The offender can then ask to become licensed and would schedule a site visit. An investigator would inspect the site and its records.

Continuing to ignore licensing requirements could land the matter in court before an administrative law judge. In the past, fines have ranged from $500 to $20,000.

Salisbury also has been cited by state and local governments for not following regulations.

In May, Polk County building officials issued a stop-work order on Safari Wild when they learned he erected buildings on the property without necessary permits.

In December, the Southwest Florida Water Management District levied a $46,000 fine against Salisbury and his business partner, St. Petersburg veterinarian Stephen Wehrmann, for unauthorized development on the property. They appealed, and on March 11, water managers lowered the fine to $12,500.

Late last year, the Florida Department of Community Affairs filed a notice of violation because the development is in Green Swamp, designated for environmental protection.

Salisbury and Wehrmann renamed the park Safari Adventures this year.

He Bought 2 Zebras From Zoo

Salisbury's trade in zebras has drawn official attention before. City auditors questioned the amount of money he made from the sale of two male and two female zebras to the zoo in April 2004. Salisbury was paid $20,000. About a year later, he bought a pair of zebras from the zoo for $2,000.

It's unclear whether these are the zebras for sale in the Animal Finder's Guide.

Lowry Park Zoo spokeswoman Rachel Nelson was not sure Friday what protocol staff used when Salisbury sold zebras to the zoo in 2004. She said she did not know whether licensing ever came up.

Today, the zoo requires a Department of Agriculture license number when it buys from any animal center endorsed by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the nation's top accrediting group.

For dealers not approved by the group, the zoo requires an actual copy of the license, Nelson said.

In December, the zoo, Salisbury and zoo collections director Larry Killmar lost their accreditation, or endorsement, after an investigation of animal trading there by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

The city owns the zoo land and animals and requires its operator, the nonprofit organization that employed Salisbury, to be accredited.

The zoo has been strengthening its animal transaction procedures since Salisbury left his $339,000-a-year job as president and CEO. Killmar still works there.

Zoo staff will be in Oklahoma City next week when the accrediting group holds a hearing on whether to reinstate its endorsement of the zoo.