The plot thickens (note that I avoided the all-too-common clichéd pun) as Mark makes Ranger Shaw aware of this “dangerous situation.” However, do parents really give pre-teen children prepaid credit cards to buy things online? I mean, I know kids get gift cards for presents. And where is Mrs. Shaw? Has she left Ranger Shaw once again? There are other inconsistencies in today’s strip. Have fun with that.

As we have noted earlier, selling ornamental shrimp is not illegal and is done virtually everywhere. Owning shrimp is not illegal. They are not really an invasive shrimp species unless they are released into the wild. Jules Rivera is making Mark out to be an over-enthusiastic alarmist. And this pet store could be a street shop in Thailand, for all anybody knows. What’s Mark gonna do then!?

This story is a bad fit for Mark. He is not an online investigator. He does not work for the FTC, DOJ, FBI, or even USPIS, federal agencies tasked with professionals who handle online fraud and illegal sales. But I wouldn’t be surprised if we discover that this online shop is within driving range, just as we saw with the story about the phony gorilla center in Florida and Happy Trail’s misplaced infatuation for its owner.

Art Dept. Regarding panel 1:  Plain embarrassing.