Private breeder raided after advertising animals for sale online
Online marketplaces and social media sites are increasingly important conduits for the illegal wildlife trade
A private collection of protected animals has been closed down in the town of Nules, close to Valencia in eastern Spain.
Officers investigating the illegal trade in wild animals discovered adverts online offering animals including Asian otters and agoutis for sale. The alleged breeder had also shared videos of leopards, owls and ibises.
A search of the facility uncovered more than 150 specimens from 56 species. The individuals in charge did not have the correct breeder permits or permission to operate as a zoo, according to authorities.
Social media platforms and other online marketplaces have become increasingly important conduits for the illegal wildlife trade in recent years. I’ve written about this before for the Guardian.
Read the full story in Noticias Ambientales.
Peru: Four illegal loggers have been jailed for 28 years each for the murder of four indigenous leaders in the Peruvian Amazon. The killings took place 11 years ago and included that of the prominent anti-logging campaigner Edwin Chota. The victims were ambushed on their way to a community assembly to discuss the impact of illegal logging in the area. They were tortured before being killed. (Context)
Gambia: Conflict is breaking out off the coast of Gambia as local fishermen attack foreign vessels who they say are crowding them out of business. Gambian regulations require foreign vessels to have a certain percentage of local staff, meaning it is often Gambian sailors who bear the brunt of the violence. Overfishing is threatening fish stocks off the coast of the African country, which relies on seafood as one of its main industries. (ABC News)
Australia: Authorities have uncovered a money laundering ring linked to the illegal smuggling of native reptiles to China. A 37-year-old was arrested in July accused of acting as a “money mule” to send funds to the overseas illicit networks. The money is alleged to have been used to illegally export the wild animals. (Australian Government)
Thailand: Police arrested two people for selling protected wildlife on Facebook and also seized firearms from an address in Bangkok. Further searches of the property revealed a slow loris, an endangered primate. Officers had arranged to buy a bearcat from the pair as part of a sting operation. (Thaiger)
Uganda: A Sudanese lawyer has been told to pay a $37,000 fine or face five years in prison for attempting to smuggle 436 pieces of ivory through an airport. A Ugandan court handed down the sentence after the shipment was discovered disguised as wood samples. Africa has lost an estimated 60 per cent of its elephant population in the past decade as a result of poaching. (Chimp Reports)
USA: Senators in the US have called for sanctions on Chinese seafood over alleged human rights violations in its commercial fishing industry. The senators said that China has turned unregulated fishing “into a weapon against American fishermen”. The Chinese fishing fleet is the largest in the world but there have been allegations of harsh treatment of foreign fishermen and other human rights issues. (Seafood Source)
India: Six men have been jailed for three years each for poaching tigers and leopards, the first convictions secured by the Tamil Nadu wildlife crime bureau. A raid on their temporary camp uncovered tiger skins and bones, and leopard parts packed for transport. The raid was carried out following intelligence from Wildlife SOS, which infiltrated the gang. (New Indian Express)
Panama: Four countries on the Pacific have joined forces to combat illegal and unregulated fishing. Officials from Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Ecuador met to draw up a roadmap for cooperation. (Tico Times)