Illegal wild animal trading ring busted in Ha Tinh province
Police in the central province of Ha Tinh have busted a ring of people who illegally traded wild animals for meat, saving a total of 215 pangolins from cages.
One of the pangolin cages found in the police raid. (Photo provided by local police)
Ha Tinh (VNA) - Police in thecentral province of Ha Tinh have busted a ring of people who illegally tradedwild animals for meat, saving a total of 215 pangolins from cages.
In an unexpected raid, the police found thepangolins in steel cages at the private house of Tran Trung Thanh, a residentin mountainous Huong Son district.
The police seized the mammals and handed them torelated wild animal protection and rehabilitation agencies. The police alsodetained nine locals for further investigation.
Pangolin is a protected wild animal due toincreasing demand for its meat and scales in Vietnam and China. Some pangolinspecies have been listed in the red book by the International Union forConservation of Nature as endangered species.
Vietnamese laws prohibit the hunting, killing,caging, trading or transport of wild animals. However, weak enforcement meansthe consumption of wild animals remains common in localities across thecountry.
During the raid, police also found elephantivory in the house of one of the nine detained people. Huong Son district is abusy centre for trading wild animals. In the early history of illegal trade inthe district decades ago, traders hunted in the local forest. Later, they beganpurchasing the animals from neighbouring countries including Laos.-VNA
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One of the pangolin cages found in the police raid. (Photo provided by local police) 
