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| Pangolins are seized from an illegal wildlife transport. — Photo from Education for Nature Vietnam |
Viet Nam News
CÀ MAU — The Forest Protection Department in southernmost Cà Mau Province said on Tuesday that border soldiers had found 114 pangolins being illegally transported in a vessel in Ô Rô Channel.
At 8.45pm on January 20, border soldiers in Ngọc Hiển District’s Đất Mũi Commune checked the vessel running on Ô Rô Channel. The captain of the vessel was Nguyễn Văn Hậu, a resident of Đất Mũi Commune.
Border soldiers found 114 pangolins weighing more than 780kg. Each animal weighed 3-10kg. As many as 15 foam boxes containing pangolin scales weighing more than 300kg were also found.
This was the largest haul of its kind in the province.
The scale-covered, ant-eating mammal is prized as an edible delicacy and ingredient in traditional medicine in Việt Nam, as well as China and many African countries.
All seven crew members admitted that the animals were handed over by a man named Bảy Râu from a vessel anchored on Hòn Khoai Island.
They were planning to transport the animals to Trần Quý, director of Hải Đăng Co Ltd.
The crew members also said they were hired many times in the past to transport animals.
The case is being further investigated. — VNS
