Monday, 9 May 2016

Sea turtle shell trafficker arrested

A 33-year old man was arrested on Tuesday April 26, 2016 for trafficking in sea turtle shells, chimpanzee skulls and pangolin scales in Eseka. The arrest was carried out by wildlife officials of the Nyong and Kelle Divisional Delegation of Forestry and Wildlife in collaboration with the gendarmerie territorial brigade in Eseka and with technical assistance from The Last Great Ape Organistion LAGA.
                The operation was conducted at the Eseka II neighbour, in a bar not very from the Gendarmeire Brigade premises as the suspect sat drinking a beer. The man had been tracked from the moment he alighted from a bike that left him in front of the bar. He carried a big bag that indicated some bulky load was inside and when he entered the bar,  got a beer a from the counters and settled for a drink, the arresting team approached him and asked what he had inside the bag that was sandwiched in between his legs. He said he doesn’t know what the bag contained and this drew some curious faces around.
                The bag was opened and  when the contents were revealed and an officer shot a similar question to know what he was doing with all the stuff, which included 8 sea turtle shells, 3 chimpanzee skulls and a few kilogrammes of pangolin scales. He again said he doesn’t know and could not explain anything. He was asked to come along to the wildlife office for clarification but he told officials to wait for him to finish his beer. The team sat and watched as he gulped down the full contents of the bottle.
                The arrest is part of a wider government strategy to conserve wildlife species in the country and trafficking in protected species including sea turtles, chimpanzees and pangolins is prohibited by the law. Illegal trade in endangered species like sea turtles and tortoises is fast paving the way for their extinction, and one of the ways of preventing it is the strict application of the law-  a fine of up to 10 million francs and or a maximum prison sentence of up to 3 year is handed to defaulters of the wildlife law.

                Sea turtles are reported to be one of the most ancient creatures on earth. The species found today have been around for about 120 million years that is longer than the dinosaurs which have long gone extinct. They are found in all warm and temperate waters throughout the world but their survival is now under threat as growing seizures of turtle shells indicate they are facing intense poaching.
                Apart from trafficking, two other threats menace the species survival. Climate change plays an important role because the temperature at which the sea turtle egg incubates determines the sex of the turtle. As global temperatures continue to rise, sea turtles could be faced with the reality of only females being born at very high temperatures. Climate change is reported to increase severe storms and the rise of sea levels which destroy sea turtle nesting sites.  And to compound matters the poaching of its eggs for food poses a another serious threat to its reproductive abilities.


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