TRAFFIC 28 Aug 09;
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 28 August 2009—In its biggest seizures of pangolins this year, Malaysia’s Wildlife and National Parks Department confiscated 98 animals from a house in Alor Setar in the northern state of Kedah.
The department’s Wildlife Crime Unit raided the house at 6.30 am on Wednesday after about three weeks of surveillance and investigations.
The unit found the totally protected animals hidden in a store room behind the house and have arrested a man in his 40s in connection with the crime.
He has been released on a MYR5,000 (USD1,400) bail.
The seizure included 58 adult male pangolins, 38 adult females, two juveniles and 3.2 kilogrammes of pangolin scales. The pangolins were later released into a protected area.
The man arrested in connection with the case faces five separate charges under the Protection of Wildlife Act 1972 including a charge of cruelty to wildlife, said Saharudin Anan who heads the Department’s law and enforcement division.
If found guilty on all counts, he could face a maximum of 23 years in prison, up to RM27,000 in fines, or both, he added.
The pangolin is the most heavily traded mammal in Southeast Asia despite being protected by local and international laws.
There is a demand for its meat as well as its scales, which are used in the making of traditional medicines, both locally and for markets abroad. The animals seized in this case are believed to be for export.
Recent seizures provide an alarming indication of the numbers being taken out of the wild.
In July Guangzhou Customs officials seized over a tonne of frozen pangolins and sentenced the leader of a wildlife smuggling gang to life imprisonment for trafficking more than 2000 pangolins and other animals.
In 2008, Thai Customs officers stopped a smuggling attempt when it seized 130 pangolins near its border with Malaysia.
Findings of a panel of experts recently showed that incessent poaching has decimated pangolin populations in the wild in many parts of Southeast Asia where they were once abundant.
Reported last month by the wildlife monitoring network TRAFFIC, the expert findings cited better enforcement and monitoring as the key to tackling the crisis.
The experts on pangolins included scientific researchers, government law enforcement officers from most Asian pangolin range States, CITES Management and Scientific Authorities and animal rescue centres, who convened at a workshop hosted by Wildlife Reserves Singapore at the Singapore Zoo.
Malaysian authorities rescue 98 pangolins: official
Yahoo News 29 Aug 09;
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) – Malaysian authorities on Saturday said they have rescued nearly 100 pangolins and arrested a man attempting to smuggle the protected species, destined to be sold to restaurants and medicine shops.
Officials from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks raided a house in northern Kedah state on Thursday and seized 98 of the animals, the department's enforcement chief Saharudin Anan told AFP.
Three kilograms (6.5 pounds) of pangolin scales were also found in the house, he added.
"We believe the animals were destined to be sold to Asian countries for their meat, as well as their scales to be used as traditional medicine," Saharudin said.
"The man, in his 40s and self-employed, will be charged in court for five different charges of illegal possession of the totally protected species and he faces up to 23 years in jail and (a) fine if convicted," the official added.
Pangolins are indigenous to the jungle of Indonesia, parts of Malaysia and areas of southern Thailand, with its meat considered a delicacy in China.
It is classified as a protected species under the UN's Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.
Wildlife officials have said pangolins face a serious threat from poachers and smugglers in Southeast Asia with inadequate punishment and lack of information encouraging the burgeoning trade.
A senior official with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Wildlife Enforcement Network said in March the main route for smuggling Pangolins is from Indonesia to Malaysia and then through Thailand to Laos or Vietnam, which border China.
Arrest Raises Concerns Over Poaching in Belum - Temenggor Forest
WWF 2 Sep 09;
A Thai poacher was nabbed with scales of a pangolin and six sacks of agarwood (gaharu) by police on Sunday morning in a forested area just off the Gerik-Jeli Highway in the Belum-Temengor Forest Complex, Perak.
Police were acting on information provided by WWF’s Wildlife Protection Unit (WPU), which regularly patrols the area with other enforcement agencies.
The 55-year-old from Chiang Rai, was among a party of five poachers ambushed by police. Four others escaped, leaving behind a camp stocked with 30 kilogrammes of rice and other essentials – indicating they were planning long-term operations.
The man now faces charges under three separate laws. Gerik OCPD, Superintendent Mahad Nor bin Abdullah, confirmed that the poacher would be charged under Section Six of the Immigration Act, for illegally entering the country. The poacher will also face charges under Section 64 (2) (a) of the Protection of Wildlife Act for possession of the Pangolin scales and Section 15 of the Forestry Act, for collecting agarwood without a license.
Cases involving foreign poachers like this one, in Perak’s forests, are becoming an issue of increasing concern, with several cases already documented so far this year.
In May, the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan) caught three Cambodian poachers in the Bintang Hijau Forest Reserve in Ulu Lawin, near Gerik with several kilogrammes of smoked Wild Boar meat, Argus Pheasant meat and feathers, and agarwood.
That same month in Sungai Mendelum, near the Royal Belum State Park, authorities uncovered poaching camps and confiscated six wire snares, while in March, three Thai nationals were caught with several protected birds in Felda Kelian Intan, in Pengkalan Hulu.
In January, Anti-Smuggling Unit officers detained two Thai nationals attempting to smuggle seven Pig-tailed Macaques from a forested area in Bukit Berapit, near the Malaysia–Thailand border.
These forests are home to many of the world’s most threatened mammals, including Sumatran Rhinos, Malayan Tigers and Asian Elephants.
According to a scientific report, the Belum-Temengor forest complex is also part of an area of global priority for Tiger conservation, yet it is one of the most accessible areas because of the 80-km long Gerik-Jeli highway that cuts across this landscape, providing hundreds of easy entry points for poachers.
“Together with Perhilitan and Police, the WPU have jointly-removed over 73 snares and arrested nine poachers in the last seven months in this very area.” said Ahmad Zafir, leader of the WPU. “Camera traps set up to capture wildlife pictures for research also often capture photographs of poachers.”
“Intelligence-led investigations are needed to remove the masterminds and backers behind the scourge of poaching and illegal trade,” says Chris R. Shepherd of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia. Ridding the forests of poachers is an on-going and important task, but it is essential to remove the main culprits behind the scenes – the big dealers running the show.”
“While Perhilitan, police and the WPU have been doing a good job so far, stopping armed poachers is dangerous and difficult work that needs the support of many agencies. I urge the government to form a Task Force , comprising additional enforcement agencies such as the Army, Immigrations, Customs, Perak State Parks Corporation and Forestry Department, to join the fight in Belum-Temengor to stamp out poaching and cross-border encroachment.” said Dato’ Dr. Dionysius Sharma, CEO of WWF-Malaysia.
