Woman fined S$3,600 after trying to sell illegal wildlife on Carousell

Channel NewsAsia 13 Jun 18;

SINGAPORE: A 22-year-old woman has been fined S$3,600 for illegally keeping a civet cat and a red-footed tortoise, said the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) on Wednesday (Jun 13).

Desiree Lim was caught after the Animals Concerns Research and Education Society (ACRES) reported an alleged sale of illegal wildlife on online platform Carousell.

AVA said it then carried out a sting operation with the help of ACRES, and seized a civet cat and a red-footed tortoise, which is a protected wildlife species.

“Further investigations at Lim’s home revealed that she was also keeping a hedgehog and a snapping turtle. This was taken into consideration during sentencing,” said AVA, adding that all the animals seized were placed under the care of Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

It is an offence in Singapore to keep or sell wildlife species and convicted offenders can be fined up to S$1,000.

If the species is protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), such as the red-footed tortoise, those convicted can be jailed for up to two years or fined a maximum of S$500,000.

Source: CNA/gs(hm)