Indonesia arrests kangaroo smuggler: police

Yahoo News 5 Dec 09;

SURABAYA (AFP) – Indonesian police said on Saturday they had arrested a man believed to have smuggled 10 rare kangaroos by boat from New Guinea island.

East Java maritime police officer Widarmanto said that the police had caught the man on Friday off the coast of Surabaya, the capital of East Java province, with the red kangaroos.

"When we caught him, five of the red kangaroos were already dead. The police then safeguarded the other five," Widarmanto, who goes by one name, said.

"The man said that he bought the kangaroos for two million rupiah (212 dollars) each."

The police were investigating whether the suspect was connected to a network of rare animal traders.

The suspect, named Mulyadi, faces up to five years in jail for violating conservation laws.

Kangaroos are native only to Australia and New Guinea, an island divided between Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.

Suspect caught selling red kangaroos
Jakarta Post 5 Dec 09;

SURABAYA: East Java's Police arrested a man in the Madura Strait on Friday for alleged involvement in the trade of red kangaroos (Macropus rufus).

An official from the East Java Police, Comr. Widarmanto, said the suspect, Mulyadi, was a crew member of the KM Mitra Nusantara.

During his arrest, 10 red kangaroos from Papua were seized. Red kangaroos are a protected species in Indonesia.

"At the time of the arrest, five of the kangaroos were already dead, while the rest were secured by the police," Widarmanto said.

"The suspect admitted buying the animals from a Papuan resident for Rp 2 million each," he added.

ProFauna Indonesia head Rosek Nursahid said this was not the first case of illegal trade in red kangaroos in the Madura Strait, but that it was the first uncovered by local authorities.

"ProFauna activists in Papua tell us the trade of red kangaroos is widespread, with animals going to Tanjung Perak Port in Surabaya, and Banyuwangi in East Java," he said. - JP