Johnny Depp’s wife charged with smuggling terriers

JOHNNY Depp’s wife, Amber Heard, has been charged with illegally bringing the couple’s dogs to Australia – an incident that captured global attention after the nation’s agriculture minister angrily ordered the animals to get out of the country or face death.

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard were at the centre of a furore when their dogs were found to be in Australia illegally. Picture: AFP/Getty

Ms Heard was charged this week with two counts of illegally importing Pistol and Boo into Australia and one count of producing a false document, the Commonwealth Department of Public Prosecutions said.

The importation charges carry a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and a fine of AU $102,000 (£48,000). The false document charge, which relates to information on an incoming passenger card, carries a penalty of up to one year in prison and a fine of AU $10,200.

Ms Heard was issued a summons to appear in a Queensland court on 7 September. Her lawyers could petition the court to appear on her behalf, but given the seriousness of the charge, it is likely she will be required to appear in person, particularly if she is in Australia at that time, said Bill Potts, a criminal defence attorney based in the Queensland capital, Brisbane.

If she is convicted, Ms Heard is unlikely to face a lengthy jail term since the dogs were flown back to the US before a 72-hour deadline, Mr Potts said.

“The seriousness of the offence is not whether two little puppies – who look like they could give you a nasty nip on the ankle – are dreadful animals, it’s about the risk to biosecurity,” he said. “Was there a risk? Potentially, but not actually. And I’m sure the court will take all of those things into account.”

Australia has strict quarantine regulations to prevent diseases such as rabies from spreading to its shores. Bringing pets into the country involves applying for a permit and quarantine on arrival of at least ten days.

In May, Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce accused Depp, 52, of smuggling the couple’s Yorkshire terriers aboard his private jet when he returned to Australia to film the fifth movie in the Pirates of the Caribbean series.

“If we start letting movie stars – even though they’ve been the sexiest man alive twice – come into our nation [with pets], then why don’t we just break the laws for everybody?” Mr Joyce said at the time. “It’s time that Pistol and Boo buggered off back to the United States.”

Officials gave Depp and Ms Heard 72 hours to send Pistol and Boo back to the US, warning that the dogs would be euthanised if they weren’t.

A Department of Agriculture officer later escorted the tiny terriers from the couple’s mansion on Queensland’s Gold Coast to the airport, where they boarded a flight to the US just hours before the deadline.

Mr Joyce’s remarks prompted a petition to save Pistol and Boo and sparked the social media hashtag #WarOnTerrier. He dismissed suggestions yesterday that charging Ms Heard made Australia look mean. “The law is the same for everybody,” he said. “There is no preferential treatment here. You come into our nation, you have to abide by ­biosecurity protocols.”