By Gabrielle Moreira
Special to the Lookout

November 19, 2014 -- The parent company and owner of The Hump, a Japanese restaurant that shut its doors at the Santa Monica Airport in 2010, pleaded guilty Monday to federal charges of selling endangered whale meat.

Typhoon Restaurant, Inc. and The Hump owner Brian Vidor each pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful sale of a marine mammal. Vidor admitted that he was aware that two sushi chefs were preparing and serving the illegal meat at his restaurant.

If the pleas are accepted by the judge presiding over the case, Vidor and Typhoon Restaurant will be required to pay a $27,500 fine and be placed on yearlong probation terms.

The case stems from an undercover sting investigation conducted in 2010 in which federal investigators, animal activists and an associate producer for the Academy Award-winning documentary “The Cove” were served whale meat by two sushi chefs at the restaurant.

The transaction was taped for the documentary, which exposed the slaughter of whales and dolphins along the Japanese coast.

The eight pieces of whale meat served at the restaurant were then bagged and sent to a lab for testing. The samples revealed the meat came from endangered Sei whales.

In March 2010, The Hump closed its doors after federal prosecutors charged the chefs, parent company and restaurant owner with the illegal sale of whale meat, which is a violation of the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

The Hump had been in business since 1998 and was known for serving exotic seafood items such as blowfish.

In 2011, a Los Angeles-based seafood supplier, Ginichi Ohira, who smuggled the meat into the U.S., pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of knowingly selling a marine mammal product for unauthorized use. Ohira, who awaits sentencing, could face eight to 14 months in prison and a fine up to $100,000.

The sushi chefs, Susumu Ueda and Kiyoshiro Yamamoto, were indicted in 2013 and pleaded guilty in February to misdemeanor charges of conspiracy and sale of marine mammal products. Ueda and Yamamoto have not been sentenced yet, but could face up to three years in prison.

Sentencing for Typhoon Restaurant, Inc. and Vidor is scheduled for Feb. 23, 2015.