JULY 17 (Reuters) — Johnny Depp’s wife, actress Amber Heard, has been charged over illegally bringing dogs Boo and Pistol into Australia on a private jet and is due in court in September, Australia’s ABC reported on Thursday (July 16).
The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions has issued a summons againts Heard, according to Australia’s national public broadcaster.
Heard faces two counts of illegally importing the Yorkshire Terriers into Australia and one count of producing a false document.
Penalties can range from a heavy fine to more than 10 years in prison.
In April, the dogs were flown in on Depp’s private jet, without being declared to customs, but government officials followed a tip-off after they were seen on the way to a grooming salon.
Depp and Heard were in Australia while he filmed the fifth of his blockbuster pirate movies, “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”
The incident highlights tough animal security laws in Australia, which has had no reported cases of rabies among dogs.
The case is due to be heard at Southport magistrate’s court on the Gold Coast on September 7.
