323: The Pablo Escobar of Eggs. Matobo National Park.

Summary

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National Park After Dark

Episode 323: The Pablo Escobar of Eggs. Matobo National Park
Published: September 22, 2025 | Hosts: Danielle & Cassie

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Episode Overview

This riveting episode explores the extraordinary life and crimes of Jeffrey Lendrum, often dubbed "The Pablo Escobar of Falcon Eggs." Set against the backdrop of Matobo National Park, Zimbabwe, the story dives into the bizarre world of rare bird egg smuggling, showing how obsession, adrenaline, and high-stakes black markets endanger some of the world's most majestic—yet vulnerable—birds of prey. The hosts discuss the evolution of wildlife crime, the allure (and devastation) of egg collecting, and the intersection between culture, conservation, and the illicit global wildlife trade.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Bird Fascination and the Battle Against Wildlife Crime

[00:02 – 03:24]

• Danielle opens with humanity’s age-old fascination with birds and how that has fed both inspiration and criminal obsession.
• Introduction to the 2010 Birmingham airport incident, where a custodian discovers an egg in suspicious circumstances—a prelude to the main story.
• “I know that when you say wildlife crime, your first thoughts may go to, like, tiger parts and rhino horns... but birds are a huge facet of this subject.” – Danielle [03:00]

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2. Setting the Scene: Matobo National Park & Early Players

[08:40 – 14:20]

• Matobo National Park in Zimbabwe is renowned for its population of raptors, especially black (Verreaux's) eagles.
• Recount of a 1960s ornithology project and the introduction of Valerie Gargett, a pioneering eagle researcher with strict conservation ethics.
• Enter young Jeffrey Lendrum and father Adrian, whose athleticism and enthusiasm opened doors within the research team.
• “She began rappelling to black eagle nests... organizers would give instructions: ‘We are visitors to their world and respect their right to live undisturbed and uninfluenced by us.’” – Danielle [11:06]
• Yet, as trusted volunteers, the Lendrums had increasing freedom—setting the stage for betrayal.

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3. From Conservationist to Criminal: The Lendrum Egg Heist

[17:24 – 22:56]

• Reports began surfacing of suspiciously empty nests in the park.
• In 1983, authorities raided the Lendrum home, discovering 800 meticulously catalogued eggs and evidence of falsified research data.
• “The eggs ranged from the most abundant birds in Africa... to the most endangered, the peregrine falcon, the missing crowned eagle egg, and seven clutches belonging to black eagles.” – Danielle [18:56]
• The Lendrums were convicted, but many suspected commercial motivations beyond mere hobbyist collecting—hinted at by the presence of live eggs in their fridge.

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4. The Rise of the Falconry Black Market

[24:13 – 36:41]

• The practice of falconry has cultural roots stretching back millennia, particularly esteemed in the Middle East and now a status symbol for Gulf royalty.
• Biological disasters (like DDT) decimated raptor populations, spurring international protections and a high-value black market for wild birds.
• Wealthy clientele in the UAE fueled modern egg-smuggling, believing wild birds outperform captive-bred—incentivizing egg thieves.
• “A pure white Gyrfalcon chick sold at auction for $400,000.” – Danielle [32:36]

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5. Jeffrey Lendrum’s Global Crime Spree

[36:41 – 68:45]

• After his initial conviction, Lendrum moved to South Africa, reinvented himself, and established curio businesses as cover.
• He expanded into criminal egg smuggling worldwide, often with accomplice Paul Mullen; their Canada operation “Operation Chili” resulted in arrest but light penalties.
• Mullen changed his name out of fear; Lendrum continued his pattern: capture, probation, brief reformation, relapse.
• Lendrum’s skills—linguistic, athletic, and technical—made him an elite smuggler, but also a figure of tragic waste: “…in another lifetime, someone as gifted…could have found enormous success in the field of wildlife conservation and possibly done a hell of a lot of good for the birds he was so clearly passionate about.” – Danielle [77:23]

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6. The 2010 Birmingham Airport Bust—“The Pablo Escobar of Falcon Eggs”

[63:00 – 68:45]

• In 2010, Lendrum is caught in an airport security sting—14 peregrine eggs strapped to his chest, disguised as part of a quasi-medical device.
• His explanation: “Wearing eggs...forced him to keep his muscles active, which would strengthen his back.” – Danielle [65:08]
• His own hubris ultimately undoes him: a DVD in his carry-on showed him brazenly collecting eggs by helicopter, providing undeniable evidence.

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7. Motivations, Obsession, and the Psychology of Egg Collectors

[49:29 – 57:31]

• The hosts explore whether money, adrenaline, or mental compulsion drove Lendrum and other notorious collectors.
• “There’s some talk about these wealthy buyers… but even when he was financially good, he kept doing it... it’s more of an adrenaline thing, he’s really good at it and he just has this obsession.” – Danielle [49:50]
• Reference to the documentary Poached and the book The Falcon Thief for deeper dives into the mindsets and law enforcement cat-and-mouse games.

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8. Legacy, Impact, and the Ongoing Fight

[77:23 – End]

• Many eggs Lendrum stole never hatched; a few lucky chicks were rescued and reintroduced to the wild by conservationists.
• Lendrum’s pattern—brilliant but pathological—culminated in multiple sentences (and identity changes), but as of 2025, his whereabouts and activities remain uncertain.
• The broader lesson: wildlife crimes often go under-policed, their ecological cost grossly underestimated.
• “Combating wildlife crime takes persistence and plenty of evidence.” – Danielle [77:23]

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “He’s supposed to turn into a cool adult...Jeffrey, you’re gonna be upset by the rest of this story.” – Cassie [17:51]
• “Who describes that as well, to have that on hand as an explanation...He thought about it hard before that.” – Cassie [65:08]
• “If you love a species so much, why don’t you collect their already hatched eggs and meticulously glue them back together? Why are you helping destroy a species you love?” – Cassie [57:06]
• “In another lifetime, someone as gifted at climbing and ornithology as he was could have found enormous success in the field of wildlife conservation and possibly done a hell of a lot of good for the birds he was so clearly passionate about.” – Danielle [77:23]
• “Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad for birds.” – Danielle [81:33]

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Notable Segment Timestamps

• [00:02]: Opening bird fascination and da Vinci/Wright brothers
• [08:40]: The rise of the Lendrum family in Matobo Nat’l Park
• [18:35]: Discovery of the Lendrum egg collection and betrayal
• [24:13]: The cultural and economic drivers of falconry and black market eggs
• [36:41]: Lendrum’s global escapades: Canada, UK, Middle East
• [63:00]: 2010 Birmingham airport sting and arrest
• [77:23]: Reflection on Lendrum’s path and broader wildlife crime issues

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Additional Resources & Recommendations

• The Falcon Thief by Joshua Hammer – Main journalistic source for this episode.
• Poached (Documentary) – Explores UK egg collecting underworld and anti-poaching efforts.
• Episode 293: “DDT So Safe You Can Eat It” – For more on how pesticides devastated birds of prey (see also Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring).

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Closing Note

Danielle and Cassie’s trademark mix of humor, empathy, and journalistic detail transforms what could be a niche conservation crime story into an urgent, entertaining, and deeply human narrative about passion, pathology, and the shadowy worlds behind cherished wild places.

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National Park After Dark: “Enjoy the view, but watch your back.”

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Transcript

[Danielle]

Humans have always been fascinated by birds. We marvel at their feathers, their sing song calls, and perhaps most of all, their ability to fly. Leonardo da Vinci filled journals with detailed sketches of their wings, including pigeons and swallows, to try and understand how they do it. The Wright brothers carefully watched turkey vultures and seagulls to mimic how they turn their wings and in air, to stay afloat. But what happens when that fascination goes too far? In May of 2010, at the Birmingham airport in central England, something was wrong. At least that's what custodian John Straczynski was thinking. He had arrived to clean the shower rooms in the Emirates lounge, but a passenger had been in there for far too long. The man, who was waiting for an afternoon flight to Dubai, had entered the shower with several suitcases, which John thought was a bit strange. And as he waited for the man to wrap up, his impatience turned to curiosity. What could he be doing in there? When the man finally stepped out of the shower room, John went inside to find all of the towels neatly folded. There was no sign that the shower or sink had been used at all. Growing more suspicious, he looked in the trash for clues, but found nothing. He even climbed onto the sink and. And checked to see if he had hidden something in the ceiling panels, but nothing. Finally, he checked the baby changing table, which had a trash bin of its own. And inside, he found a single egg. John didn't know that the man was a seasoned operative in a covert world of crime. He had no idea the man had illegal contraband strapped to his chest, concealed under his clothing, hidden from view. But with the sight of that one egg, coupled with the odd behavior, he knew enough to know that something wasn't right. And it wouldn't be long until it was revealed just how right John Straczynski would be. Welcome to national park after D.

[Cassie]

I'm so excited because one the first thing you said was about birds. And I like birds now newly. But is this a bird egg smuggling episode?

[Danielle]

It sure is.

[Cassie]

What in the. I'm so ready for this.

[Danielle]

I know that, like, I had teased this to you just personally because I read a book that had to deal that inspired this whole thing and we'll get into it. So I know that I was like kind of teasing you for. For a while about it and surprise, it's today.

[Cassie]

I'm. I'm so stoked. I have never been more ready to hear a story in my life.

[Danielle]

It's weird. Okay. It's. Well, hello, everyone. Welcome to National Park After Dark. My name is Danielle. I'm going to be telling you a egg smuggling story today.

[Cassie]

And I'm Cassie, and I like birds.

[Danielle]

She loves birds. It's a newfound thing, and a lot of our audience are birders as well. Would you consider yourself a birder?

[Cassie]

I think I'm a birder in training.

[Danielle]

Okay.

[Cassie]

Because I don't think I know enough about birds yet to be considered a real birder.

[Danielle]

Okay. Well, this is for all the bird lovers out there. It's definitely an interesting story and there's going to be a lot to talk about, especially towards the end when we get into a little bit of discussion about this story. It has to do with wildlife crime, and that has always been really compelling for me personally. And I think when you say wildlife crime, your first thoughts may go to, like, the big names of, like, tiger parts and rhino horns and gall. Bear gallbladders and like, kind of the big, like, pangolin stuff. Like, I don't know, I just feel like. I just feel like people don't think of birds when they think of wildlife crime, but it's a huge facet of. Of this subject. So we're gonna get into it.

[Cassie]

Cool.

[Danielle]

Before we get into the episode, just a little bit of, like, housekeeping and announcement stuff. We have Spooky season merch that is available today. Well, it came out a couple days ago, but it's available now.

[Cassie]

Yeah, if you didn't hear the news, it's available now. Go check it out. We have Spooky season merch. If you're watching, I have tie dye. This is the first time we've ever had tie dye on the merch. So that's really exciting. And we have some spooky. Some spooky designs, which is very cool.

[Danielle]

Yeah. So this is. We have a couple of new items. We. I mean, the tie dye is my personal favorite one. It's especially because of the colors. I love tie dye in general. I think you think of, like, bright and rainbow colors and like, festival stuff. And this is just like, it's. It's black and orange and yes. Creepy themed. I love it. And then the beanie. I like this beanie. I don't know if you can tell in the video. It's like a darker green. It kind of looks black in my video right now.

[Cassie]

Yeah. So a forest green.

[Danielle]

Yeah, it's a forest green. We have a pennant, which is really cool. That is like some fun decor type stuff. We have some favorites coming back. The. You got haunted stuff. And this is a good opportunity real quick to address merch. So this is A limited drop. However, we are working on something that will be a little bit more regular, which we can announce when it comes. But this in particular, you're going to have, you know, a week or so to get it. So just, if you want it, snag it while you can. And also, we get emails all the time from people who are concerned for us and feel for us about our Cryptid campfire design being on other merchandise on other sites. And yes, it's very sad. However, we have tried our best. We've talked about this before, but we've tried our best with trying to mitigate that and control that. We've sought out legal help to try and do so, but the Internet's the wild west, and it's like playing whack a mole. If you try and take one down, five more pop up. And it's just. It's really hard to control. So the d. We are very well aware that the design is out there and being kind of ripped off by other sellers. And it's unfortunate and it's sad to see. However, the only way to get it through us is through our merch site.

[Cassie]

Yeah. If you see it anywhere else, they just stole our design.

[Danielle]

Yeah. So, I mean, it's been everywhere.

[Cassie]

And we don't support Sheen. You know, you're never gonna see our merch sold by us on Sheen.

[Danielle]

Yeah. Or Walmart took it.

[Cassie]

Yeah. Walmart had it for a while. They might still. I don't know.

[Danielle]

Yeah, it's.

[Cassie]

It's messed up.

[Danielle]

It is messed up. And we. We agree. It's a cool design. Like, we get. I understand why you want it, but you're doing it the wrong way. So anyway, yeah. For any type of national park after dark merchandise that you may see, whether it's that or a different design in the future, if you see it circulating around, not specifically on our site or through us, it's not us. And thank you for sending that stuff in. We are aware of it, but. Yeah, so we have merch. Get it while you can. We have other stuff cooking up, but for now, go get some tie dye.

[Cassie]

Get it. All right, well, let's jump into this story today.

[Danielle]

So right here, before we start, right up top, I want to shout out the primary source for today's episode, which I alluded to a few months back, actually, I posted on my personal Instagram. I had four books. I couldn't decide which one I wanted to read next. Just like, for personal reading. Just trying to get through my TBR list. And I asked my followers to vote on which book to read. And this one didn't win that poll, but I eventually got to it, and it's called the Falcon Thief. So for those few hundred people that voted for this one, now's your time to hear a condensed version of it. It's where a lot of the main story is going to come from today. And, of course, all the additional show notes and stuff are in the episode description, if you are so inclined. And there is a documentary that we'll discuss at the end as well.

[Cassie]

Cool.

[Danielle]

So I know I set you up a bit in that intro on kind of a little bit of a cliffhanger, and I promise we'll get back to that scene in the airport. But the story of who has become known as the Pablo Escobar of falcon eggs begins somewhere else entirely in southern Africa, at Matobo National Park.

[Cassie]

The Pablo Escob of bird eggs. Of falcon eggs. Okay, I'm just picturing this guy off in the middle of wherever in a mansion that's heavily guarded, and he's got this room just full of eggs.

[Danielle]

Well, you're not far off. Okay, so going a bit into this national park. Located in modern day Zimbabwe, Matobo national park is a birder's paradise. Rising from dense woodlands, the park's granite mountains and towering rock formations are home to one of the highest concentrations of birds of prey anywhere on Earth, including African crowned eagles, fish eagles, harrier hawks, rock kestrels, and many more. And back in the 1960s, when the country was still known as Rhodesia, the Rhodesian Ornithological Society launched an ambitious project to study black eagles, more formally known as Varro eagles. And these birds have mostly jet black feathers with this white V on its back and white wing panels visible in flight. They have these sharp yellow gray beaks and really piercing eyes. They're absolutely beautiful. And they're actually the largest bird of prey in the Matobo hills.

[Cassie]

Very cool.

[Danielle]

They build nests high on granite cliffs, sometimes hundreds of feet off of the ground. And this is great because it makes it hard for predators like baboons to reach their eggs and to mess with the nests. But it also makes it really difficult to find them and access them for study. Not only for monitoring eggs and clutches and things like that, but how they court one another, their just their behavior and things like that, because they're just so out of reach.

[Cassie]

They're mysterious.

[Danielle]

They are mysterious. But none of that deterred Valerie Gargett, a teacher turned ornithologist whose passion for birds earned her a reputation amongst Friends as sort of like this Jane Goodall of the raptor world. She began rappelling to black eagle nests, taking notes on their breeding patterns and getting so comfortable with the birds that they actually allowed her to reach in and weigh their eggs and study them and take notes. She organized a team of volunteers to follow eagle pairs during the nesting season, which was from January to April. To each team she would give instructions that showed her affections for the birds and her conservation philosophy. So it was pretty lengthy, but a quote from it says, do not stay at or near the nest for longer than five minutes to obtain the information. We are visitors to their world and respect their right to live undisturbed and uninfluenced by us. So she's like, we need this information. It's valuable. We want to study them, but don't push it. And they take priority.

[Cassie]

Yeah, it's like, I know you might think they're cool, but we can't interfere.

[Danielle]

Yeah. But because of their hard to reach nesting sites and just the location of where they chose to nest made it really difficult for volunteers to reach them, either due to volunteers age or general fitness levels. So not many people could reach the nests to study them. But then two new volunteers began to attend their general meetings. 11 year old Jeffrey Lendrum and his father, Adrian. Jeffrey was a polite kid, if a little unmotivated at school, but a natural born athlete. His father adrian, was an HR manager for Dunlop Tires in Bulawayu, a town about 30 miles outside of Matobo National Park. Both of them were really enthusiastic about the outdoors and clearly very interested in becoming involved in this project. Val and her husband Eric were thrilled to welcome the Lundrums into the group and were hopeful that they could monitor the least accessible nest sites. They taught Jeffrey how to safely rappel down cliff faces, practicing how to secure rope, tie the right knots and maintain proper form. And because he was such a natural born athlete, he did so well with this. He was just like it was a natural fit. He learned very quickly and in no time, he began helping with surveys, lowering himself hundreds of feet and perching on a ledge mere inches wide to access remote nests. Over time, often he would be joined by his childhood friend and fellow falcon enthusiast, Howard Waller. Between Jeffrey's nimble climbing and his father's aptitude for research, Valerie began to trust the two with more and more responsibility. She put them in charge of surveying another bird of prey, the agar buzzard. And they poured hundreds of hours into the project, locating 30 nests and writing reports about their Courtship behavior. Next, they were entrusted with surveys of the African hawk eagle, which builds enormous stick nests in the forks of trees. Soon they were scrambling up ficus and ironwood trees across the park to study them. Seems like a perfect situation for young boys in particular. I mean, Jeffrey started when he was just 11 years old and he's kind of growing up. It's spending his free time with his dad exploring a national park and getting to climb trees and explore and just like feel like he's part of this operation, you know, it's just like this.

[Cassie]

Is how you raise cool kids, right? You make it do stuff like this.

[Danielle]

Yeah. So he's climbing, exploring and as time went on and Lendrum grew older, what perhaps began as something he did as a kid because his dad signed him up for it initially became a shared passion. All told, the Lendrums went on to publish 18 academic studies while working in Matobo, wrote articles for local bird magazines, and earned a place among Val's most trusted colleagues. For being a Sagittarius, I would never be described as the life of the party. I still do love a good night out occasionally, but I'm rarely in the mood to drink anymore. But I have an alternative. Soul's out of Office Gummies. They give me the same light happy buzz without the killer hangover that I simply cannot handle anymore. Soul is a wellness brand that believes feeling good should be fun and easy. Seoul specializes in delicious hemp derived THC and CBD products designed to boost your mood and help you unwind. Their best selling out of Office Gummies were designed to provide a mild relaxing buzz, boost your mood and enhance creativity and relaxation. With five different strengths, you can tailor the dose to fit your vibe from a gentle 1 1/2 milligram microdose to their newest 15 milligram gummy for a more elevated experience. I am personally a 1.5 milligram girl. Godspeed. If you are a 15 milligram kind of person, you have my admiration and respect. But I'm also a giant fan of their out of office beverage. Because who doesn't like a nice little drink treat? Especially one that's a refreshing, alcohol free alternative. A perfect way to wind down on the couch with a good movie on the tv, if I do say so myself. Bring on the good vibes and treat yourself to Seoul today. Right now, Seoul is offering our audience 30% off your entire order. Go to getsoul.com and use the code NPAD. That's getsoul.com, promo code NPAD. For 30% off. But around this time, surveys across Matobo began to report empty nests. A snake eagle nest that had been monitored all season would turn up empty, leading Val and others to assume that a predator had eaten the eggs. Volunteers watched black eagles prepare to lay eggs, lining their stick nests with greenery. But the eggs would seemingly never come. In the decades surveys had been taking place in Matobo, this was unprecedented. And eventually evidence started to point to it being an inside job. In late 1982, a park warden named Steve Edwards found an egg in a crowned eagle nest. And crowned eagles are one of the rarest raptors in all of Africa, not just this national park. And only three mating pairs had ever been documented in, in history within the national park. So this was like a really big deal. So it was a nest that was being heavily monitored and just wanting to keep eyes on how things were progressing.

[Cassie]

They picked the wrong nest to go unnoticed.

[Danielle]

While overjoyed, and knowing that they only laid two eggs per clutch, Edwards returned to the nests two days later. So again, he noticed it, told everyone, and everyone's keeping an eye on it. But on the way in to go check in on the eggs, he ran into a now 21 year old Jeffrey Lendrum headed in the opposite direction.

[Cassie]

Jeffrey, Jeffrey's supposed to be raised cool.

[Danielle]

He's supposed to be cool, but he's.

[Cassie]

Supposed to turn into a cool adult.

[Danielle]

Jeffrey, Jeffrey, you're gonna be upset by.

[Cassie]

The rest of this story.

[Danielle]

When asked if he had just visited the crowned eagle nest, Jeffrey said, yeah. He had told Edwards that there were two eggs in the nest, and since he had just been up there, he didn't have to worry about going and checking in on him. He's like, everything's Gucci over there. Don't worry about it. Everything is all well and good. Well, after Jeffrey left, Edwards climbed the tree anyways and found an empty nest. Val didn't want to believe that this father son duo that she had mentored had betrayed her trust. Because it's not just this one incident. Like I just said, there were different suspicious things popping up here and there.

[Cassie]

This is kind of like tying it all together, seeing, catching Jeffrey in the middle of it.

[Danielle]

Yep. She didn't want to believe that they would desecrate the very nests that they were there to protect. But after Edward's report, she began visiting the Aries that Lendrum had surveyed and found too many empty nests to ignore. With Warden Edward's help, they launched an investigation into both Jeffrey and Adrian. That following year, In October of 1983, local officials had a search warrant to raid their house. In a bedroom cabinet, they found an enormous collection of over 800 eggs representing dozens of species, meticulously organized as if it was a museum display. The eggs, gently resting on cotton, ranged from the most abundant birds in Africa, like the common bulbul, a small brown songbird, to the most endangered, the peregrine falcon, the missing crowned eagle egg, and seven clutches belonging to black eagles.

[Cassie]

No, this is. This is reminding me of your episode that you did in. God, I'm forgetting the name of it. Indiana Mounds. Was it that one where it was the park ranger who went in and stole all of the indigenous artifacts and had them in his garage?

[Danielle]

Yes. It's not called Indiana Mounds. It's called Mounds is in There.

[Cassie]

Mounds is in there.

[Danielle]

Yes, it was a while ago. God, it was. That was in 2022. We did that episode. It'll come to me. But.

[Cassie]

Yes, but he was doing it for preservation. In his own egotistical, Egotistical way, he thought he was preserving these. And it feels like this is a lot darker than that.

[Danielle]

Well, you'll. That's. Hang on to that thought because that's kind of like one of the topics I want to talk about towards the end of, like, that discussion of the kind of driving force and motivation behind not just the Lendrum father son duo, but the many other people who have been egg collectors and kind of why they do it.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

And each case is different, and this one will have a little bit of a. I think it might be a little clear why. Why Jeffrey decided to lean into this. But anyway, I think it has a similar. A similar tone of like, they think they're doing something not good, but not harmful. Like, who am I harming?

[Cassie]

I don't know. The eggs that were supposed to hatch.

[Danielle]

Yeah, well, you would think it's obvious. But let me tell you, in that documentary, you will question people's ability to under, like, not understand that.

[Cassie]

I feel like I'm going to be so riled up by this episode that as soon as we hang up from recording, I'm going to go watch the documentary and be like, why?

[Danielle]

Well, back to the landrums and their houses being raided. There's 800 eggs in this collection.

[Cassie]

Not the peregrine falcons, the fastest bird in the world.

[Danielle]

Well, so the officials, the wildlife officials are like, okay, so please explain what is this? And Adrian, the dad insisted that the eggs were just a mere schoolboy collection and that, and that they hadn't done anything wrong.

[Cassie]

But 800amirror collection. Okay.

[Danielle]

Well, also his own records proved otherwise. Fine. Point pen markings on the eggs and associated data cards tracked the exact nest that they were stolen from and on what date. After a closer look, the records in the collection lined up with the survey locations Val had assigned them.

[Cassie]

They literally wrote down everything. They didn't even try to hide their tracks. They wrote down everything.

[Danielle]

Well, I mean, they wrote down everything. Yeah. So this not only explained the missing eggs, but revealed much of the Lendrum survey data. Detailed status checks of the fledgling chicks spreading their wings and leaving the nest to be outright lice. Because they just fabricated. I mean, nobody hatched out of those eggs. Cause they stole them. But yet their data.

[Cassie]

And they were the only ones monitoring these. So they're like, yeah, the eggs did great, they hatched, flew away, population's thriving. But meanwhile, lies. They're sitting in their closet.

[Danielle]

Yep. In October of 1984, Adrian and Jeffrey Lendrum were convicted of theft and illegal possession of specially protected wildlife. Adrian was also convicted of fraud. Their egg collection was confiscated and they each received a $2,500 fine. A four month prison sentence that they could avoid by staying out of trouble for five years. Despite the harsh sentence, some believed that there was more to the story than the verdict revealed. Nearly all of the eggs in Lendrum's collection had been emptied, meaning they'd had these little pinholes in the top and bottom of each egg that were used to blow out the embryo and keep them from rotting. But in the Lendrum's refrigerator, in an open Tupperware, investigators also found two live peregrine falcon eggs. So why were those kept viable? The leading theory starts with falconry, the art and sport of using trained birds to hunt other animals, whether using hawks, falcons or eagles. People have engaged in falconry for thousands of years. Across Europe. In the Middle Ages, it became sort of a status symbol. The largest, rarest birds prized by kings and nobles. In the Middle east, where evidence suggests that falconry first emerged, it was practiced as a means of subsistence. The nomadic Budoan people of the Arabian Desert used peregrine falcons to hunt birds and hares, supplementing a diet otherwise limited by their harsh environment. To capture the fastest bird on earth, the Padoan people developed ingenious techniques, including one where they tied a dozen small nooses woven from camel hair to the back of a pigeon. When peregrines passed overhead during their fall migration to Africa, the snare covered pigeons would take flight and any falcon who took the bait would get tangled up and tumble to the earth. So that's how they originally started capturing them to train them to use in.

[Cassie]

What, an innovative way to try and catch them.

[Danielle]

Yeah.

[Cassie]

Not condoning it by any means, but. Wow.

[Danielle]

And this is like. I mean, we're talking. Yeah, we're talking thousands of years ago. You know, it's.

[Cassie]

It's a wild way to catch an animal using another animal and a snare. Yeah, I've never even. I could have never thought of that. Yeah. Genius.

[Danielle]

As time went on, firearms replaced falconry across much of Europe. But the tradition remained a cultural fixture in the Middle east. By the 20th century, as the oil industry brought wealth and change to the region, falcons were adopted as iconography on various things. I mean, everything from their currency. Different businesses, like, had their logos with falcons on them. And even countries had national emblems of falcons and pointing to, most specifically the United Arab Emirates or the uae. Yet at the same time, peregrine falcons and other birds of prey were in decline. Between the 1930s and 1970s, an estimated 90% of peregrines in the United States had died. Great Britain lost almost 75% during that same time. And it just reminds me of, like, their symbols. They're kind of on everything. It's like they're. I don't want to say mascot, because that's like, such a. Not adequate term, but you know what I mean? It reminds me of the grizzly on the California state flag.

[Cassie]

Yeah. It's kind of like what you're doing there. You guys eradicated them.

[Danielle]

Yeah. And it's just kind of like a. A symbol of what once thrived and is no longer. So that's kind of the parallel I drew with that. But speaking of the decline, I had to sneak this in here a little bit. Call back. In her book, Silent Spring, biologist Rachel Carson found a culprit.

[Cassie]

I was wondering if she was going to come up.

[Danielle]

There she is. Yep. So in Silent Spring, biologist Rachel Carson found a culprit for this decline in ddt, a pesticide that, when ingested by birds, interferes with their ability to metabolize calcium in birds of prey, where DDT concentrations were the highest. This caused brittle, thin shelled eggs that broke in the nest before they could hatch. With growing awareness and urgency, nations rallied around efforts to ban DDT and introduced protections like the 1973 Endangered Species Act. Here in the United States and in the international world, CITES was a treaty that was put into place that same year which outlawed the trade of 1,200 protected species, including several different birds of prey. And, of course, if you want to know more about DDT and all, how amazingly awful that was. Cassie, of course, just covered an episode entirely dedicated to that. I looked it up, episode 293, because I remembered the title.

[Cassie]

DDT so safe you can eat it. That was a real ad. It was a real advertisement. If you haven't listened to it, you can YouTube it. It's horrifying.

[Danielle]

Yeah. So episode 293, if you want more info on that. But anyway, so kind of going back to falconry and what that has to do with Lendrum and this whole topic. For the wealthy rulers of the uae, falconry was a core part of the country's identity. As signatories of the CITES treaty. They realized falconers were no longer able to capture their birds in the wild because, of course, this treaty prohibited, you know, this endangered species. It's like, okay, we now have protections on birds of prey, and peregrine falcons are. Are part of that. So in order to meet demand, they turned to captive breeding programs. And important to our story in particular, remember Howard, Jeffrey Lundrum's friend that would sometimes go out with him and do probably steal eggs, but whatever. Participating in these surveys. So Howard was breeding falcons in South Africa by the late 80s, and in 1988, he was invited to Dubai to start a captive breeding program for Sheikh Buti Ben Juma Al Maktoum, who was the cousin of Dubai's. Of Dubai's crown prince. So he's up there in the world of this already kind of prestigious realm of. Yeah, obviously no one's not using falconry, especially the. Some of the wealthiest people in the entire world. They're not doing it for subsistence hunting anymore.

[Cassie]

But it's a status symbol.

[Danielle]

Yeah.

[Cassie]

I mean, I can't lie. It'd be pretty cool to be sitting here right now, and I've just envisioning if I had my own owl. So kind of like Harry Potter and I have a window right next to me. Like, if we were just recording and my owl came and like sat on my shoulder while we recorded, that would be a huge status symbol. I would look the coolest I've ever looked in my entire life. Yeah, so I get it.

[Danielle]

And you would choose an owl.

[Cassie]

Yeah, an owl for sure. I think that they're so cool. And I think I would switch my owl. So I would have a snowy owl in the wintertime and I would have a barred owl in the summertime.

[Danielle]

Okay.

[Cassie]

Just because they're round here. And I see barred owls pretty often, and snowy owls do come to Vermont, but they are Very rare. So I would have the rare snowy.

[Danielle]

Owl, which would make you even cooler.

[Cassie]

Exactly.

[Danielle]

Yeah. I'm following. I'm picking up what you're putting down.

[Cassie]

But as a person who knows that that is deeply wrong, you will not see would never an owl on either of these shoulders, unfortunately.

[Danielle]

And that is the only reason. She could, but she won't.

[Cassie]

I really could. I feel like I would be an owl whisperer if I wanted to be. I could.

[Danielle]

Yeah. Your vibes are. Are good.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

For owls, I think.

[Cassie]

Yeah. They would catch on to my vibes for sure.

[Danielle]

Okay, well, going back to. I'm like, I don't even know how to segue out of it. I'm lost in it.

[Cassie]

It's distracting.

[Danielle]

Okay. It is distracting. So. Okay. Going back to Howard Waller and his breeding program. It actually went on to become one of the most successful breeding programs of its kind, period. Not just in that location, but in the world. The expansive facility soon housed hundreds of birds with butchers on hand to prepare their daily meals and amenities to cater to their every need. For example, GIR falcons, the largest falcons on earth live in Arctic tundras where they can endure temperatures of up to negative 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

[Cassie]

Wow.

[Danielle]

And Waller's multi million dollar air conditioned gymnasiums allowed them to survive in Dubai's 130 degree summer heat. And if any bird got sick, they'd be whisked to Dubai's state of the art Falcon hospital which boasted x ray machines, antibiotics and on call intensive care veterinarians. The success of Waller's captive breeding program and others liked it helped falconry grow both in popularity and in scope. Scope 2002 saw the birth of falcon racing, a new sport where the birds take turns speeding down a 400 meter course. First hosted by the royal family of Dubai. The event's success spawned a growing industry with more competitions and larger prizes. The President's cup hosted annually in Abu Dhabi has awarded prizes worth up to $11 million for Falcon Racing.

[Cassie]

Well, that's why people get into it.

[Danielle]

And just like racehorses racing falcons are bred and sold to eager buyers. And I want you to. Okay, so I'm going to have you guess. Don't overshoot. Be realistic. But just like guess. So in 2021, a pure white ger falcon chick sold at auction for how much do you think? Like a little baby.

[Cassie]

A little baby Falcon. Up to $11 million in prizes if they win.

[Danielle]

If they're like the cheap champ of champ.

[Cassie]

The champ of champs. 500,000.

[Danielle]

400,000.

[Cassie]

Wow.

[Danielle]

Pretty close.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

I mean, that's a ton. That's a house for a small bird.

[Cassie]

For a little bird. I mean, don't get me wrong, it's cute.

[Danielle]

Yeah. But houses are.

[Cassie]

I would spend that on a house before I'd spend it on a baby bird that could just live outside where it's supposed to.

[Danielle]

Yeah. Truly.

[Cassie]

Just leave it alone. Let it grow in nature. Foreign.

[Danielle]

For so long I have been on the hunt for that one. Go to natural fiber hoodie I can always pack and know I'll stay comfortable no matter what I'm doing or where I'm going. Because let's be honest, my trips are a bit all over the place. I've tried cashmere, merino, you name it. But then everything changed when I finally found this. Alpaca hoodie from Paca Pakka makes performance apparel from Alpaca Fiber, one of the world's most sustainable natural fibers. Their best selling hoodie is softer than cashmere, warmer than wool, and breathable. It's thermoregulating, odor resistant, durable and made to last. Which is great because I'm practically living in it at this point, especially with these fall days upon us. Each one is handcrafted in Peru by artisans who stitch their name into the tag, a personal signature of quality and care. I was wearing my pack a hoodie meeting up with some family recently and my cousin hugged me to say hi and pulled away, stroked my arm and wanted to know all about my hoodie and where she could snag something that soft. This is a hoodie I can wear to the movies, out on the trails or out to lunch. Three of my favorite things to grab your packa hoodie and free pair of alpaca crew socks. Head to go.pakaapparel.com npad and use our code npad. That's go paka apparel.com npad and enter code npad while given the renewed demand for falcons, patrons of captive breeding programs began touting them as a conservation success story, making the case that their efforts are protecting globally threatened species by keeping wild birds at a safe distance from from the falconry industry. But despite these successes, the black market for wild birds was thriving. Sacre falcons native to Central Asia were declared globally endangered in 2012 after years of known illegal trapping. Some smugglers moved the birds out of Russia over land borders with blacks enforcement and in other cases, falcons had been intercepted on planes, sedated and hidden in suitcases and in the CITES database, which tracks smuggling by air. The leading destination for trafficked birds is the uae. This demand is driven in part by a persistent belief among some that wild born birds are inherently stronger and faster than birds that could ever be bred in captivity, no matter how amazing the facility and how high tech things are there. Like, they're basically just saying you can't really replicate the wild factor, and wild birds are always going to be better. But others point to breeding programs, and without the influx of new birds, a captive population will become inbred, causing it to collapse over time. Bringing in wild caught birds can sustain the genetic integrity of the captive population. And in turn, the breeding program can essentially cover up any sort of crime of smuggling in wild birds. DNA evidence has caught some breeders in the act of laundering wild birds through their facility, meaning passing them off to clients as legal captive bred birds. Efforts have increased internationally to crack down on this sophisticated market. But smuggling efforts have shifted, too. Rather than moving adult falcons, which proves to be difficult, I mean, they're literally sedating entire birds and shoving them into suitcases and trying to smuggle them through airports. And, like, just instead of doing that, some realized it might be just much easier to smuggle their eggs. And so we're.

[Cassie]

Which brings us to the airport bathroom with an egg in the trash.

[Danielle]

Well, not quite yet, but back to our story, for sure. So that brings us back to Jeffrey in particular. And after his conviction In Zimbabwe in 1984, he was ostracized by the birding community and banned from Matobo National Park.

[Cassie]

As he should be.

[Danielle]

Right. They're like, first of all, how dare you?

[Cassie]

We gave you access to these creatures.

[Danielle]

Yeah.

[Cassie]

And we trusted you.

[Danielle]

Yep. And so, in turn, for a chance at a clean start, he decided to move to South Africa. Still in his early 20s. At this point in time, he sought out several side hustles to make ends meet, the most successful of which involved selling spare parts for cars and planes, as well as some mining equipment. Years passed. He married a woman from South Africa, and while it didn't last, the two stayed friends. And he swore during all this time that he had left nest raiding behind. Didn't touch it, wasn't involved. Lendrum had been in South Africa for over a decade when he met Paul Mullen. Mullen, a British businessman, worked for a company in Johannesburg who was building infrastructure for the Internet. And by day, he advised the purchase of servers and telecommunication hardware. But in his free time, he followed F1 Racing and James Bond. Mullen's girlfriend, who had once worked as a stripper in Johannesburg, had met Jeffrey at work. So essentially, his girlfriend, Mullen's girlfriend was a stripper and Jeffrey was at the strip club and met her. And she introduced Jeffrey to her boyfriend, Mullen.

[Cassie]

Gotcha.

[Danielle]

And they became friends.

[Cassie]

Gotcha.

[Danielle]

They quickly bonded over a shared love of safaris and fast cars. And they grew closer the following year, meeting up regularly for drinks and social events to race Jeffrey's Mini Cooper around a local racetrack. And then a year later, in 1999, Lendrum approached Mullen with a business idea. Always on the lookout for side hustles, he had taken notice of all the craft and curio shops in Johannesburg. And he asked Mullen, what if we could sell these handmade African crafts in the uk? Mullen replied, sure, let's give it a shot. So not long after, they opened up a shop in Southampton, just south of London where Mullen had once lived and named it Africa Extreme. All that was left to do was set out across southern Africa to find suppliers. The two would drive thousands of miles visiting Zimbabwe, Lendrum's hometown of Bulawayu and Victoria Falls to the northwest, a popular tourist destination. Doing their best to avoid cheating cheap and mass produced items, they bought artisan made ebony walking sticks, wood carved safari animals, traditional drums and near life size carvings of giraffes amongst many other things. For their curio shop, Lendrum was at ease bargaining with traders as he learned to speak some undebele as a boy, which is a Zulu based official language in Zimbabwe, as well as a mix of English, Afrikaans and Zulu spoken by miners and other workers. As they traveled around Zimbabwe, Mullen began to see that there was more to Lendrum than his side hustles. On a visit to Matobo national park, the very same park that he was once banned from entirely, albeit just for the year following his arrest.

[Cassie]

Oh, they only banned him for one year?

[Danielle]

Yeah, just a year.

[Cassie]

That's way too trusting.

[Danielle]

Yeah, well, I'm sure they regret that.

[Cassie]

Oh, he's going to go back. Okay, keep. No.

[Danielle]

Okay, Jeffrey. So the two of them are out on their recon mission of getting different stuff for their business and they go to Matobo National Park. And Jeffrey absolutely amazed his friend with his encyclopedic knowledge of wildlife. He rattled off the scientific names for every single bird they saw. And I mean like every bird. And he describes them like every. I mean, he said even when he saw a bird high in the sky, it's just like a dot to him. He knows the species and whether it was male or female, like just full of knowledge about all the wildlife there and particularly the birds of Course, a.

[Cassie]

Birder using their powers for. Against good, for evil. It's very. For evil. Yeah, yeah. A birder using their powers for evil, yes.

[Danielle]

That's what this whole thing is sadly about.

[Cassie]

No, the betrayal.

[Danielle]

On one trip to Bulawayo, though, Mullen noticed something odd in the chalet that they'd been staying in. Cartons of hard boiled eggs had appeared suddenly and the eggs clearly were dyed various colors. When he asked his friend what they were, Jeffrey plainly replied that he'd been collecting live raptor eggs from Matobo to sell to clients that he would not name. So he's like, oh yeah, I stole him.

[Cassie]

No baking.

[Danielle]

He's like, what? And he was replacing the live eggs with hard boiled ones so that the birds might reject them and lay more so that he could go back and collect more. Apparently encouraged by Mullen's reaction, he also shared that he had plans to steal exotic eggs from birds of prey around the world, which he could then sell to Middle Eastern falconers. He even had a trip in mind, stealing Gyrfalcons from the far north of Canada. So his friend basically didn't bat an eye at this plan, so he felt comfortable. Jeffrey basically said, you know, you seem down with this, so I'll tell you everything you want in.

[Cassie]

And then he said, yeah.

[Danielle]

And he said, hell yeah. So two years later, in the small Inuit village of Kujayak in northern Quebec, Jeffrey and Paul were both arrested. Fast forward. They were charged with illegal hunting and wild egg possession. The two had been caught after their helicopter pilot, Pete Duncan, saw through the COVID story that they provided him. So basically, Jeffrey and Paul had claimed to be documentarians for Nat Geo and that they just happened to be there to capture exclusive footage of Gurfalcons. A Kudjuaic native, Duncan had flown many, many different photographers. This isn't his first trip around the block and he had hosted people for years in search of everything in the high Arctic, like polar bears, other wildlife, actual documentarians. So he kind of knew the deal.

[Cassie]

That they weren't the real thing, right?

[Danielle]

So when this these two guys repeatedly asked him to be dropped off at certain locations and then picked up just an hour later and then moved to someone else, somewhere else. And to be taken to all these different locations, he immediately was like, what are you doing? You know, like, usually I drop someone off, they're there all day or even for several days, and then I'll come pick them back up.

[Cassie]

Especially if you're observing something, it doesn't take you any longer to Observe wildlife.

[Danielle]

Yeah. You need more time. Yeah. He also noticed immediately that Mullen, who claimed to be the videographer of the. He was the Nat Geo videographer.

[Cassie]

Right.

[Danielle]

Had no clue how to use his camera.

[Cassie]

Like Red Flag.

[Danielle]

No.

[Cassie]

You work for Nat Geo and you don't know how to use a video camera.

[Danielle]

Right. So immediately he knew that something was going on. He just didn't quite know what. By the end of the week when. Because again, long story short, I'm trying to condense this because this book is actually really long, but essentially, he tips off law enforcement, they arrest them, and when the police are raiding their hotel room. Wildlife officials had already determined that they were stealing falcon eggs. So they weren't really surprised to find a portable incubator with seven eggs tucked right next to the bed. When questioned, the two men mostly stuck to their cover story. Mullen insisted he was there to film falcons. He's doubling down on the Nat Geo.

[Cassie]

I don't know how they got there. Those aren't my eggs.

[Danielle]

And they just. I mean, they feigned ignorance of the seven eggs in the incubator, or Mullen did, but Lendrum explained, because he always has a reason, you'll come to find out. He explained that he had collected a few adult specimens, meaning eggs that were no longer viable, like they weren't going to hatch anyway, to test them for pesticide poisoning and plan to return. Return them to the clutches the very next day. He's like, oh, those. I'm actually here for the greater good.

[Cassie]

It's like I am studying them because I care about these populations. How dare you, first of all.

[Danielle]

Yeah, how dare you. The audacity question my. My morals here. And again, back to the, like, kind of going back to when they first got him and his dad first got raided. And they had all this, like, evidence pointing to their actual motivating factors. A laptop was found in their hotel room, and it revealed that this was the second year in a row that they had visited this area. It had receipts for their previous flights into Canada and the $30,000 they spent on chartering a helicopter. The laptop did not reveal that they had collected 27 eggs from the 19 nests or that they had called their whole affair operation Chili. And it also did not reveal Jeffrey's claim that each white gerfalcon egg would fetch between 70 and $100,000. However, all of that information would come out later.

[Cassie]

I found a Google search that was like, how to trick someone into thinking I'm a Nat Geo videographer.

[Danielle]

How to use a camera. This show is sponsored by Liquid iv. Even though we're all stoked for fall, we have to face the reality that with the change of season usually comes with a bit of a change in energy levels. Summer vacations are over and work tends to get crazy this time of year, especially for us. So making sure I stick to a routine is essential for me this time of year, especially one that maintains my energy. And that's why I use Liquid IV. Liquid IV's new sugar free hydrating energy helps boost hydration and my energy without those energy drink jitters and crash out. I keep my favorite flavor, BlackBerry Lemonade in my Pilates bag to add to my water after my workout, especially those heated sessions that I feel like I barely survive every single time. Just one stick and 16 ounces of water hydrates better than water alone and there's still time to get outside and hike. It's arguably the best time of year to do so and we always talk about the importance of staying hydrated in our stories and we mean it. With three times the electrolytes of the leading sports drink, natural caffeine, eight essential vitamins and nutrients always non gmo, vegan, gluten free, dairy free and soy free. This is the type of hydration we talk about and that you need. Don't just power through your day. Ditch the glitch with zero sugar and zero crash from Liquid IV. Tear poor live more. Go to Liquid I.com and get 20 off of your first order with code NPAD at checkout. That's 20 off your first order with code [e-mail] for the time being. While law enforcement was sure that the two were part of a well financed smuggling operation without indisputable evidence like for example, being caught boarding a plane with eggs, like kind of caught red handed. Canadian wildlife officials couldn't charge the two with trafficking. Instead they pled guilty to their charges of illegal hunting and egg possession and paid the highest fine allowed under the under Canadian law, which was $7,250, which.

[Cassie]

Is dimes on what they're actually making off of these things.

[Danielle]

I mean if it's true, if his calculations of or his estimates of what a single egg would fetch, you know, that's a drop in the bucket to them. They're like, okay, whatever.

[Cassie]

It's like, sure, I'll pay that. Just don't ban me from being here.

[Danielle]

Well, after being released from custody, they were warned against ever returning to Canada.

[Cassie]

Oh that's good. So Canada doesn't mess around. As soon as you have Any type of charge on you. They're like, you're not welcome here.

[Danielle]

Oh, yeah, no, don't even think about coming here.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

Mullen, who maintained he was there for nagio reasons and a bit of an adventure, was shaken by the entire ordeal. And within weeks, he legally changed his name. He's like, that was really close and I'm scared and I don't want anything to do with this anymore. But for Jeffrey, this series of events would become a pattern he would follow for the next 20 years.

[Cassie]

He did this for 20 more years without being caught.

[Danielle]

Well, he would get caught, try and straighten out, and then fall back on nest raiding when things got tough.

[Cassie]

Do we ever find Geoffrey's villain origin story? Like, what turned him. What changed him from learning? What changed him from being inspired by his dad to see these beautiful things to becoming the villain that's destroying all these things he knows so much about?

[Danielle]

No. So it's interesting because. It's interesting because people speculate kind of like what flipped that switch and why he decided to do this. Of course. And we. I already mentioned it a little bit, but at the end I will as well. You know, there are. There's some talk about these wealthy buyers, Middle Eastern buyers, that he is doing this for. And which would seem to point that money, money is a big motivator for him. But even. There are some circumstances where it's like, even when he was financially good, he kept doing it. So his friends and family kind of point to it being more of like an adrenaline thing and a thing of like, he's really good at it and he just has this obsession with doing it. And he's not alone. Like, this story is primarily about him. But the documentary I watched, it's called Poached, if you're interested. It's. I rented it on Amazon prime, but I think it's on a couple other platforms. And. And it's a. How do I say this? It's more of a low budget film, documentary film.

[Cassie]

Gotcha.

[Danielle]

But it is extremely interesting. And it goes into it actually interviews four different egg collectors or previously convicted egg collectors, and kind of gets into their minds of why they did what they did, how they did it. And there's interviews with different wildlife officials that are on task forces that help combat wildlife trafficking and trade. And it's all based in the uk. Like, it's huge in the uk.

[Cassie]

So interesting.

[Danielle]

And they even said they're like, we're not even sure, like what it is about this area, but this is just like such a big hot spot for egg collectors. And then they go into all these different areas where it's this really cool kind of combination of volunteer birders who have a passion for birder for birds, and teaming up with wildlife officials and law enforcement to monitor all these different protected areas for these egg collectors who come in and they do everything. They go in, they'll be like, oh, I'm just here with my girlfriend, or I'm here with my kid, or I'm just here like, fishing or taking a walk or whatever. But they're sneakily trying to find different nesting locations and they're scoping things out and they're literally. So there's these birders, like people who are retired and just would be out watching birds anyway, that have dedicated their time and energy and a lot of money from different organizations as well go into this of just protecting, like, certain areas of nesting sites against these people who are just lurking and like, circling like sharks, ready to come and steal eggs.

[Cassie]

That'll be MIA when I'm retired. Psycho.

[Danielle]

Like, so if you're interested, and I'm sure, like the US and some places have operations like this that you could, like, become a part of, but in the uk, it's huge.

[Cassie]

That's so I am so intrigued of why. Why the uk but also, I don't know, the UK was really big on like, bird plume feathers and stuff too. So maybe they just have a bird obsession.

[Danielle]

And it's literally all for. And they say it in the documentary, even some. One of the previous. Like, they always say, oh, I'm reformed. Like, I swear I don't do this anymore. Like, the documentary does kind of a good job of like, kind of painting them and editing him in the light of, like. We're not sure if we believe this dude.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

Like, he's actually not doing this anymore. But they'll just be like, you know, going through all this. And I mean, people, they're like. We've had friends die, like, rappelling off cliffs to try and get. Like, I watched somebody fall to their death. And like, people die doing this to try and steal eggs just to put them. I mean, and they blow them out, so they'll. And it's. It's awful because if there are even any sort of development in there, there's different ways to test if they're starting to develop into a chicken. They'll essentially remove those chicks in a really awful way and suck them out of the egg and all just to put them in a glass case in. In a drawer somewhere.

[Cassie]

And then Never. Just look at them occasionally. And.

[Danielle]

Yeah, yeah. Which reminded me of. Because this Lendrum is more kind of like, we're thinking, he's doing a lot of this to sell for to the uae, to buyers that want to. Who want birds eventually to use in falconry and different things like that, not just for the egg.

[Cassie]

It's so interesting because I recently went to a falconry, and when I was there, I found out that they get them from breeders who specifically breed birds to live in captivity to get falconries. And I'm just thinking of this whole thing. I'm like, is this the same thing? Just sanction.

[Danielle]

Like, is this.

[Cassie]

Like, is this a similar way that.

[Danielle]

They'Re getting their birds?

[Cassie]

And I don't know, I have no idea where they get their birds from, but did say that they're raised in captivity and they get them from breeders. And that was kind of a red flag for me because breeding places can be really sketchy in anything. But I would hope that they would be using someone reputable. But I don't even know about that because I still don't agree with that. But it's just reminding me of that. Like, if it's the same vein where he is now smuggling eggs so then they can be bred for these types of facilities.

[Danielle]

Well, it's just. It's interesting because, like, he's kind of in that lane. But then in poached, they were really focusing more on just like private collectors for eggs. And it reminded me a lot of the dinosaur episode that you did about fossil collecting and just for collectors to just have. Just in their private homes for no other reason.

[Cassie]

Yeah. Leonardo DiCaprio just has a she ton. Millions of dollars worth of dinosaur bones for his private collection.

[Danielle]

Yeah. It's just.

[Cassie]

And his girlfriend's under 25.

[Danielle]

Well, that's another conversation that still upsets me because I'm out of the running. I've aged out of the brackets.

[Cassie]

You have aged out.

[Danielle]

But. And you know, there's another conversation about that that we've had exhaustively on that episode, but those animals are no longer living like these. You're having a detrimental impact on very real populations of animals by doing this. And they completely, at least in the documentary and even in this book, like, they give reasons of, like, they're like, no, I love birds. I. I'm doing it out of a place of love. I just love them so much. I want a piece of them. And, like, what I'm doing is not. I mean, they're in tears in the. In the documentary about how much they love bird. And this guy even takes his kid to this like museum where there's a bunch of taxidermied animals and all these eggs and stuff. And he shows his, like he's the seven year old child. Like, look what they used to do to all these animals. And the kid starts crying and he even says he's like, I'm seven. Like this is I'm seven.

[Cassie]

Why are you showing me this? That's really sad. I don't know. If you love a species so much, why don't you collect their already hatched eggs and meticulously glue them back together? I don't know. It's just like, why are you helping destroy a species that you love? Because you want it to sit on your, your counter, right? Get a, get binoculars, sit outside, touch some grass, hang out.

[Danielle]

Well, I mean they do have binoculars and they do have a lot of gear.

[Cassie]

I mean they're climbing the extensive climbing and I mean they're doing a lot to get out here. But it's so much effort to, to destroy the thing you quote unquote love.

[Danielle]

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[Cassie]

Like once you start shoplifting, you can't stop.

[Danielle]

It's like a compulsion, compulsion. Like you just have to do it. Especially because he's so good at it and whatever. And maybe they, they were like, well, maybe it's just giving him this source of like this rush of satisfaction or adrenaline or whatever that he can't replicate in his day to day normal life.

[Cassie]

Maybe this is the only way he can find himself to, to be able to get out into the world the way he wants to be. Climbing and into these beautiful landscapes and seeing these birds that he loves. He can't find a better way to do it.

[Danielle]

Yeah, I don't know. Well, and that's the question. People are like, what is happening here? You know, like we're trying to figure this out. But regardless, in any case, weeks after his Canada arrest, Lendrum married his latest girlfriend and settled down in her home in England. And then for the next seven years, he continued to run Africa Extreme, later renamed African Art and Curios. Mullen, who'd served as Lindrum's best man under his new name, because, remember, he changed his name because he was really scared.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

He left the business in 2003 for financial reasons and on his own. Lendrum struggled to keep things afloat in the business, borrowing money from family until he was forced to close the business in 2008. In the months that followed, Lendrum's relationship with his wife and friendship with Mullen would both implode. Mullins South African girlfriend who lived with him in England with their infant daughter returned to Johannesburg on vacation. And while she was there, she started a relationship with Jeffrey, who had since drifted apart from his own wife. Jeffrey, to make matters worse, Jeffrey. Okay, so Jeffrey. During a custody battle between Mullen and his girlfriend over their daughter, Lendrum sided with the girlfriend like his best friend, who was his best man at his wedding, who was his business partner, and for years just been so close. He's like, actually, I'm now with your girl and I agree with her and she should get to keep your kid.

[Cassie]

I'm the father now.

[Danielle]

Oh my God, it's so bad.

[Cassie]

Oh my God. Jeffrey's such a villain. He's such a villain. He can't be trusted in his relationship and he can't be trusted with wildlife.

[Danielle]

Yep. And I included that because it is kind of an aside to the whole birding thing. But it just kind of goes to show his character. His character, right. So in a short window of time, Lendrum's marriage fell apart, he lost his business, and he ended his closest friendship. And around the same time, volunteers monitoring peregrine nests in South Wales started to notice missing eggs.

[Cassie]

I said not between falcons.

[Danielle]

Between 2007 and 2010, they had recorded a growing list of disappearances and many missing from Aries, only accessible to someone with highly technical repelling skills. And now here we are at the beginning. In May of 2010, 100 miles away in the Birmingham airport, a sharp eyed custodian noticed Jeffrey was up to something. So now we are back into the bathroom. After spending 20 minutes in the shower room of the lounge, the custodian discovered a single egg in the waste bin and called security. Before he could board his flight to Dubai, counterterrorism agents pulled Jeffrey aside for questioning, only to discover 14 live peregrine eggs strapped to his body. Secured by an array of white surgical tape, woolen socks and zip ties. The eggs were close enough to his body to not arouse any suspicion. If you were just like looking at him, you wouldn't notice. There was like, he just looked like overweight or something. He just. Well, they were really close to his chest and the, the eggs are on the smaller side. But he did it, you know, obviously to conceal them and keep them warm. To keep them warm.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

Right. Okay, you're gonna love this. Okay. You're gonna, you're gonna love this.

[Cassie]

Okay.

[Danielle]

When he was asked about.

[Cassie]

No.

[Danielle]

Hey, what the hell are these?

[Cassie]

No.

[Danielle]

What's all this now?

[Cassie]

What? Jeffrey.

[Danielle]

Jeffrey replied that they were duck eggs and provided an elaborate explanation as to why they were strapped to his torso. He said a physiotherapist had consulted him about a spinal problem and recommended he wear fragile objects around his body. Wearing eggs, he explained, forced him to keep his muscles active, which would strengthen his back. So that's why they're there. And they're ducks, not peregrine falcons. What? What? Who describes that as well, to have that like on hand as an explanation as well is he thought about it.

[Cassie]

He thought about it hard before that. If I get caught, I'm gonna come up with why? What?

[Danielle]

Okay, so the team and they believed him. They were like, oh, that makes sense. Carry.

[Cassie]

Go ahead, get on the plane.

[Danielle]

They're like, my mistake. Totally makes sense.

[Cassie]

Didn't mean to disturb you and your ducks.

[Danielle]

So the team at the airport called Andy McWilliam, an investigator with England's National Wildlife Crime Unit. Based on their physical description and coloration, McWillian believed that the eggs belonged to paragin falcons and requested Jeffrey be detained until they could build a case against him. Unlike Jeffrey's Canada arrest, McWilliam had evidence of Lendrum's intent to traffic the eggs, seeing as he was about to board a flight to Dubai. Because remember, they're like before in Canada he had all this stuff, but he wasn't really caught in the act of leaving. Do it with those, trafficking them.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

So now he's like, oh, gotcha. Yeah, gotcha. You know that Kanye west gotcha. You don't know kind of.

[Cassie]

Not really.

[Danielle]

You're by alien. I've told you this. Okay. However, he had limited proof that Jeffrey was a career criminal outside of the climbing equipment and incubator they had found in his car. And that is until this guy just can't with the evidence that just points to exactly what he's doing.

[Cassie]

Did he have a journal that detailed exactly what he was doing?

[Danielle]

No. Even better, he had a DVD in his carry on bag that had footage of him doing like, that's not me.

[Cassie]

How'd that get in there?

[Danielle]

Who is that?

[Cassie]

Who is framing me?

[Danielle]

So on this DVD was footage that Paul Mullen captured. Remember the Nat Geo videographer captured during their first trip to Canada while masquerading as the Nat Geo documentarians. In the footage, McWilliams saw the view from their helicopter. Jeffrey suspended by rope beneath said helicopter and dangling hundreds of feet above open water. And he was completely calm. A distressed female gerfalcon circled overhead as he collected the four eggs within her nest and placed them in a cooler bag. Successful the Pilot flew back to solid land and lowered landrum onto the tundra. In another clip, the helicopter pilot, who happened to be a childhood friend of Jeffrey's, smiled to the camera, stating, look at us. We're criminals.

[Cassie]

Straight to jail. Straight to jail. Show the jury that meetup clip.

[Danielle]

I know, it's like. And what else do you need?

[Cassie]

It's like, all right, case closed.

[Danielle]

Thank you everyone for being here. I think we've seen all we need to see. And let's get them locked up, please. In addition to the DVD, McWilliam also found documents describing scouting missions across the world, detailing military presence near nests in Sri Lanka and airport security in Dubai. It was immediately clear to McWilliam that Lendrum was not only a professional, but a very well financed one. So how in the world was he affording all of these expeditions? He would soon get some insight into that question through Paul Mullen, Lendrum's former friend. Mullen saw coverage of the arrest in the news and still bitter about their broken friendship, called the police to volunteer as a witness. Yes, he would later say, karma's a bitch.

[Cassie]

Sure is good for him. Yeah, I'd be just as salty and just as petty. Be like, I joined him one time here. Let me detail everything we did. Yeah, for full immunity, of course.

[Danielle]

Well, he does spill the beans. And he tells law enforcement that Jeffrey told him that in order to fund the trip to Kudrayak, he sold his house in England. But Paul knew he didn't have a house in England. He's like, okay, whatever he's telling you is false. I actually know the truth. And later he said Jeffrey went to Dubai to meet with his boyhood friend Howard Waller, who now ran a falcon breeding program. But Mullen claimed Waller offered to finance nest raiding expeditions and that Lendrum returned from Dubai with over a hundred thousand dollars in cash. So he's like, they're both lying to you. Things are amiss here. In turn, Howard Waller, when confronted about this claim, said it was all a lie. Waller said he repeatedly tried to dissuade Lendrum from egg collecting. But other childhood connection, the blame always landed on him. He told the author of the Falcon Thief, quote, there's nothing I can do about that. I can't change my childhood. What I can say is that we took different paths. My path was falconry and breeding falcons, and his path was collecting eggs. It's always been a thrill for Jeff. He likes to beat the system. When McWilliam pressed Lendrum for knowledge of clients in the Middle east, he claimed to have no idea what he was talking about, saying that this trip to Wales was a one off and that he was rescuing the peregrine eggs from pigeon fanciers. McWilliam assumed he was playing dumb because he was eager to return to business after his release. So it's like you're already changing your story. At first you said they were duck eggs, and now you're saying, okay, they are peregrine eggs, but I swear I'm doing it to protect them.

[Cassie]

I am saving them by flying them to Dubai.

[Danielle]

Yeah. So it's already sketch all around. For nearly four months, McWilliam built a case against Jeffrey as a confident and capable veteran criminal. On August 19, in a room filled with media hungry for news about this, Pablo Escobar of falcon eggs, an outwardly remorseful Landrum pled guilty to the charges. One count of theft of a protected species and one count of attempting to export a protected species. He was sentenced to to 30 months of imprisonment, a severe punishment that the judge declared was intended to deter others from following in his footsteps. McWilliam glanced over at Lindrum, who he'd seen fearlessly swaying from a helicopter 700ft above the water. And there sat that same man on a bench, completely stunned. But however severe the punishment, the pattern of Jeffrey's life seemed doomed to repeat. After serving out his sentence in England, which would later be reduced to 18 months with parole due to good behavior, Jeffrey returned to South Africa in late 2011. His brother Richard tried to help him out by offering him a meager job at his magazine, the African Hunting Gazette. In this position, Jeffrey would help verify the claims of different hunting lodges in the area. He would travel to evaluate the big game, the amenities that they offered, and any services that they advertised. But after only two years, readers of this magazine discovered Jeffrey's criminal past and they were pissed. They were like, okay, so within this respected publication, you have a convicted wildlife smuggler on staff, like, what the hell.

[Cassie]

That is recommending these safaris to go on for us that are supposed to be protecting and reputable. Reputable and advocating for wildlife.

[Danielle]

Right? So that was a difficult. That put his brother in a really difficult spot because of course he wanted to help his brother, but this was his business and people were upset. So he made the decision to let his brother go from his position. And soon after, he lost contact with him entirely. It really fractured their relationship. The next time Jeffrey resurfaces is in 2015 in Punta Arenas, the southernmost city in Chile. Nicholas Fernandez, a part time receptionist at the hotel Plaza discovered a strange bag a customer had left the left behind. It contained climbing gear and what an Internet search soon revealed to be an incubator. As Fernandez tried to determine what the bag might have been used for, Lendrum happened to call the hotel. He said, oh, hey, yeah, I, I left a bag there during my stay last year, and I was hoping I could retrieve it when I come back in a couple months. Is it still there and can I book a room? Fernandez promptly searched Lendrum's name online because that's a very strange set of circumstances. He's like, who is this guy and what is going on? And he discovered what that bag was for. He consulted with hotel management and local police, and they said, yeah, let, let him come. Let's freaking trap this guy, you know?

[Cassie]

Yeah, let's see what he's up to. What's he trying to pull here in Chile?

[Danielle]

Yep. So they allowed him to come and essentially set a trap for him after his stay, which turned out to be a trip plundering the nests of the pallid peregrine, a falcon only found in Patagonia. Authorities intercepted him at the airport in Brazil. Found with four eggs stored casually in an incubator in his carry on bag. He insisted under oath to a judge that he was just a bird watcher and he intended to save the eggs. After finding their mother dead nearby, he was sentenced to four and a half years in prison and fined $10,500, the harshest sentence possible under Brazil's wildlife laws, but was released on bail pending an appeal. In Jeffrey's telling, he soon pulled off a daring escape. He traveled for hours to the southern edge of Brazil. And with only the food and water he could carry, he snuck through the jungle for nearly a day, past border guards and into Argentina. His Brazilian lawyer, Rodrigo Tomes, doubted his version of the story because I guess he had. So Jeff had been hospitalized in the days prior to this alleged grand escape because he got. I forget the species of spider, but he essentially got bit by a spider and his leg, like, blew up and he could barely walk.

[Cassie]

Okay.

[Danielle]

And he almost died. Like, his heart almost stopped. And he was hospitalized for days over this thing. He's like, there is no freaking way.

[Cassie]

You trekked across the jungle.

[Danielle]

No, he's like, honestly, like, in that area of Brazil, the border control is really lax between Brazil and Argentina. No one was like, on, like, yeah, he was in trouble, but he didn't have, like, his face plastered in every border.

[Cassie]

He probably just drove through.

[Danielle]

He literally just said he could have just taken a bus. So there it is again. He's like lying and whatever.

[Cassie]

It's just to inflate his own ego.

[Danielle]

Yep. And six months later, Jeffrey reemerges in South Africa. So he friggin.

[Cassie]

He totally escapes then.

[Danielle]

Yes, escapes.

[Cassie]

Jeffrey, you're an interesting dude, but man, you're a villain. You're such a villain.

[Danielle]

I know, and I know this is going on for a while, but I swear we are almost done. At this point, Lendrum's life seems to be catching up to him. Each of his missions had gotten sloppier and now the Brazilian government was demanding his extradition. He is now in his 50s. Hold up in Petroia, any money he had made, he had spent. He and his girlfriend, Paul's ex girlfriend, had split.

[Cassie]

Yeah, you really chose a winner for her. Like you left your man for this guy.

[Danielle]

Yeah. By 2017, he'd been diagnosed with prostate cancer and shortly after got into a serious car accident that left him with nerve damage. He continued to defend his actions to journalists as attempts to save or study birds. Like, he is dying on this hill. He told friends and family that he planned to write a memoir, but that he feared the danger he'd be in if he exposed his affluent clientele in the Middle East. And yet In June of 2018, he was arrested once more, this time in London's Heathrow Airport. The eggs collected across South Africa were hidden in a custom made belt under his clothes. Yet he suspiciously chose to wear a thick winter coat in the middle of an awful heat wave. In the courtroom, he insisted he rescued the eggs from deforestation.

[Cassie]

Like, come on, we can just google your name at this point.

[Danielle]

Yep.

[Cassie]

And know exactly what you're doing.

[Danielle]

Yeah. And it's like this. Your excuses don't even match up. Like, what are you doing? The judge handed him a sentence of 37 months of imprisonment, only counting Jeffrey's five arrests. He was caught smuggling nearly 50 wild eggs. Roughly half of those died after being removed from their nests. The remaining eggs hatched and the chicks survived. Many were reintroduced into the wild thanks to the efforts of non profits and government agencies that support raptor conservation. In the United States and in national parks, wildlife crime takes many forms. Deer illegally hunted in Yosemite. Bird wings and salamanders stolen from Petrified forest. Black bears killed for their gallbladders in Shenandoah. And as Landrum's tale reveals, combating wildlife crime takes persistence and plenty of evidence. For that reason, when illegal wildlife remains are seized in the US they're often Housed in the National Wildlife Property Repository in Colorado. Run by the U.S. fish and Wildlife Service, this center secures confiscated wildlife products for use as evidence in different court cases, as well as education and conservation efforts. But wrapping up with Geoffrey and why he did it, of course, that is a question we could ponder forever. But it's clear that in another lifetime, someone as gifted at climbing and ornithology as he was could have found enormous success in the field of wildlife conservation and possibly done a hell of a lot of good for the birds he was so clearly passionate about. Yet his passion in this life seemed to be warped by other desires. Adrenaline, obsession, and greed. In his latest and as of now, final arrest, some friends speculated he got caught on purpose. Sick, broke, and struggling in the outside world, he might have thought jail could provide free food and health care. Perhaps he longed to break the pattern of his life. In 2017, court records revealed he changed his name to John Smith.

[Cassie]

Wow.

[Danielle]

And made an original choice. I mean, he's like, I really want to blend in. I don't know what better name to do it with. And maybe that was an attempt to start over, perhaps to live a life unburdened by the mistakes of his past. Or maybe he just hoped to escape suspicion on his next heist. But at this point, we do not know, because Lendrum was released on parole in 2020 and has not been in the headlines since. So what Jeffrey Lendrum, AKA John Smith, is up to right now, we do not know. And as of this recording, obviously, August 2025. But that is the story of Geoffrey Lundrum and his weird fascination with stealing eggs.

[Cassie]

Yeah. Wow. I hope. Geoffrey, if you're listening, I hope that you have changed and you're using your powers for good, because you sound like you're extremely intelligent and knowledgeable about birds, but, man, you should be in jail still. You really. People should take wildlife crime so much more serious than they do. I think he should have been put in jail for life after, like, his.

[Danielle]

I mean, third time. If he got caught and didn't evade capture in whatever way via bus or through the jungle, whatever. I mean, they were gonna put him away for a long time.

[Cassie]

But only four years, right?

[Danielle]

I mean, long.

[Cassie]

Much longer in comparison, but still not.

[Danielle]

Yeah.

[Cassie]

I mean, he.

[Danielle]

It just seems exhausting. Like, what's up with you, man? I was exhausted. Exhausted telling that story. I'm like, okay, again, try therapy. Oh, yeah.

[Cassie]

And again, you know, like, something. Something's wrong there.

[Danielle]

I just.

[Cassie]

Yeah. Especially because it was clear he was never gonna change, and that's where it gets hard.

[Danielle]

Well, and that's how exactly like to wrap this up, you know, with the recommendations of the Falcon Thief, that book. But also the documentary Poached. You'll see. It's just like these. There's something going on with why these people are doing what they're doing. And they know it's not right, but they. It's. It's like this compulsion.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

And I can't understand it because.

[Cassie]

Very interesting. I don't get it. But people are interesting.

[Danielle]

It's bad. Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad.

[Cassie]

Yeah.

[Danielle]

Bad, bad, bad for birds.

[Cassie]

What is that song? Oh, I'm thinking bird. Bird is the word of that.

[Danielle]

We are in. Okay, I'm on two different pages here with you. I thought you were trying to do bad to the bone.

[Cassie]

No, bad on the day I was born.

[Danielle]

And that's all the time we had. Thank you so much for listening to National Park After Dark. This is why we don't record at night.

[Cassie]

Yeah, it is getting really late. All right, well, thank you everyone for tuning in. Enjoy the view, but watch your back.

[Danielle]

Bye Bye. Thank you for joining us again this week. If you love National Park After Dark and want to hear exclusive bonus stories, join us on Patreon or Apple subscriptions. Patreon subscribers have access to our National Park After Dark book club, live streams, Discord and much more. If you prefer to watch our episodes video episodes are now available on YouTube. If you're enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate, review and subscribe on your favorite listening platform platform. And to follow along with all our adventures, you can find us on Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok and x NationalPark After Dark.

[Cassie]

I'm Alastair Campbell from the Rest is Politics.

[Danielle]

Anish Kumar here from Pod Save the UK and Cristiana Figueres from Outrage and Uproar.

[Cassie]

Rising inequality, conflict, climate disaster. It's very hard to find reasons to be hopeful about the future.

[Danielle]

That's why we're teaming up this September during the 80th General assembly of the United nations. Along with political currency Pod. Save the World, the Week Junior and more. We'll discuss the stories that give us hope and answer the question, how does hope turn into action?

[Cassie]

Look out for the Be Hope takeover this September.

[Danielle]

This is the story of the 1. As head of maintenance at a concert hall, he knows the show must always go on. That's why he works behind the scenes, ensuring every light is working, the H Vac is humming, and his facility shines with Grainger's supplies and solutions for every challenge he faces. Plus 24. 7 customer support. His venue never misses a beat. Call quickgranger.com or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done.

[Cassie]

I'm Alastair Campbell from the Rest Is Politics, Anish Kumar here from pod, Save.

[Danielle]

The UK and Cristiana Figueres from Outrage and Optimism.

[Cassie]

Rising inequality, conflict, climate, disaster is very hard to find reasons to be hopeful about the future.

[Danielle]

That's why we're teaming up this September during the 80th General assembly of the United nations, along with political currency pod, Save the World, the Week Junior and more. We'll discuss the stories that give us hope and answer the question, how does hope turn into action?

[Cassie]

Look out for the Be Hope takeover this September.