Welcome to Wild Crime
A newsletter covering wildlife trafficking and environmental crime around the world.
Welcome to Wild Crime, a newsletter covering wildlife trafficking and environmental crime around the world. I’ll be reporting on topics from the illegal market for exotic animals, to illicit fishing in international waters, and environmental destruction caused by human activity.
For non-paid subscribers, I’ll be sending a weekly roundup of news in the world of wildlife crime. For paid subscribers I’ll be delivering regular deep dives and interviews. I’m going to aim for a minimum of one a month – hopefully at least two. But bear with me while I get things up and running.
Thank you for subscribing. I hope you find the newsletter useful, whether you’re a journalist, policymaker, law enforcement officer or interested member of the public. Enjoy.
PS. If there's a story that you think the newsletter should cover then please let me know. I welcome any tips or pointers. Or if you want to give some feedback then that’s welcome too. You can reach me at bysammeadows@gmail.com.
News round-up
Latin America: Fraud, corruption and money laundering related to wildlife trafficking caused Brazil to drop two points in Transparency International’s annual Corruption Perception Index. The organisation said that corruption “fuelled” wildlife crime across Latin America and that there was an environment of “impunity”. Criminal organisations are able to exploit large areas with little fear of consequences, it said, leading to issues with illegal logging in Ecuador and wildlife trafficking in Brazil. (Transparency International)
Nigeria: Nearly 5,000kg of pangolin scales were seized in Nigeria as part of Operation Thunder, a joint law enforcement operation between Interpol and the World Customs Organisation. The global operation also saw seizures of 5,193 red-eared ornamental slider turtles at an airport in India, 6,500 live songbirds at the Syria-Türkiye border and eight tigers in Czechia. (EnviroNews Nigeria)
USA: Five spider monkeys which were rescued from traffickers at the US-Mexico border are preparing to begin their new life in zoos in Chicago and Houston. The baby monkeys were found “malnourished and in diapers” according to the Chicago Tribune. They were initially sent to the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, which nursed them back to health for a year and a half before they were sent on their way. (Chicago Tribune)
Madagascar: Madagascar made 19 arrests as it shut down an illegal tortoise trafficking ring, Mongabay reports. A Tanzanian national was stopped in December and was found to be transporting 800 tortoises, prompting the investigation. Malagasy tortoises are endangered but more than 2,000 were reportedly seized last year. (Mongabay)
Brazil: More than 5,000 truckloads of timber were seized in an illegal logging investigation in the Amazon rainforest in two weeks of raids. Operation Maravalha has been focusing on logging in the Brazilian states of Amazonas, Para and Rondonia for the past year. Officials said nearly a dozen sawmills were closed and $2.7m in fines were handed out. (Reuters)
China: Chinese police cleared 14,000 maritime crimes in 2024, according to its Ministry of Public Security. These included cases of illegal fishing, smuggling and human trafficking, according to the State Council Information Office. In what it called a “special operation” between May and October, more than 1,700 tonnes of illegal catch were seized. No information was given as to how many arrests were made linked to these cases. (Chinese government)
USA: The US Coast Guard seized more than 700kg of “illegally caught” red snapper and nine sharks last week off Southern Texas. They also detained 11 alleged Mexican fishermen. (Homeland Security Today)