JAKARTA: Four lions and a leopard, all cubs, as well as 58 rare Indian star tortoises were recovered from a man in Riau who smuggled the animals from Malaysia.
The 38-year-old suspect was detained by police at a coastal landing point in Rupat at the Bengkalis regency, according to kompas.com.
Riau police crime unit chief Andri Setiawan said the animals, which were kept in three boxes, were smuggled to be sold in Indonesia.
Andri said this was the second time the suspect, who is be-lieved to be part of an international wildlife smuggling network, was apprehended by the authorities.
‘The first time was last October when he was caught trying to smuggle a cheetah from Malaysia to Lampung.’
The second case followed a month-long surveillance by the Riau police.
Their break came after receiving word about delivery of the animals in Rupat, Bengkalis.
‘It was reported that the suspect was to take a speedboat to an unofficial port located behind the Dumai Immigration Office,’ he said.
The suspect, however, switched plans and went to Pekanbaru instead, where he was arrested.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed the African lion, Indian star tortoise and leopard on its red list of threatened species, calling them ‘vulnerable’ due to their continuing decline in numbers.
The seized animals had been handed over to the Riau Natural Resources Conservation Agency and latersent to the Kasang Kulim Zoo in Kampar regency.
The agency’s head, Suharyono, said the smuggled animals, particularly the four African lion cubs, were in need of intensive treatment.