SINGAPORE – Five puppies and three kittens had been discovered throughout a automobile inspection at Woodlands Checkpoint on Jan 10, in what’s the first case of animal smuggling detected in 2024.
The National Parks Board (NParks) and Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) stated in a joint assertion on Jan 23 that the animals had been discovered hidden within the automotive’s spare tyre compartment. A 42-year-old driver has been arrested.
Less than one month in the past, ICA officers detected two separate smuggling makes an attempt on Dec 27, 2023. Five puppies had been discovered hidden within the boot of a automobile, whereas 5 kittens had been discovered beneath the seats of one other automobile.
Both drivers and one other three individuals had been arrested by NParks officers in these instances.
NParks stated the instances are beneath investigation.
More than 30 instances of pet animal and wildlife smuggling had been detected by NParks and accomplice companies in 2023.
NParks stated that since 2021, it has seized 180 wildlife specimens in instances which concerned suspects who had marketed these animals on the market by way of on-line platforms similar to Telegram. Many of those animals had been protected beneath the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites).
Cites-protected species should not allowed to be bought, supplied on the market or stored as pets in Singapore.
Under the Animals and Birds Act, a first-time offender discovered responsible of importing any animal or chicken with out a licence could also be fined as much as $10,000, jailed as much as 12 months, or each.
Those discovered responsible of illegally buying and selling Cites-protected species could also be fined as much as $100,000 per specimen and be jailed as much as six years.
