Exotic Smugglers Arrested

Cambodia is well-known for being home to many rare and exotic animals. Unfortunately, this diversity in fauna makes Cambodian animals very susceptible to becoming victims of illegal wildlife smuggling and trading.

Cambodian officials from the Wildlife Rapid Rescue Team recently arrested two smugglers who were driving vehicles that contained hundreds of live reptiles. The animals were inhumanely crammed into the backs of cars that were stopped in Kâmpóng Chhn?ng Province in central Cambodia. They were contained in tin cans and bags kept in ice to crudely maintain the reptiles body temperature. Burmese pythons, king cobras, reticulated pythons, yellow-headed temple turtles, Malayan snail-eating turtles, and Asiatic softshell turtles were among the species found, the latter three being listed as endangered or vulnerable species. Smugglers can wipe out an entire population of those turtles within a specific river or stream with one shipment of animals.

The smugglers were believed to be on their way to Vietnam, where the animals would likely be illegally sold for food in Asian countries or used to practice traditional marriage. Colin Poole, Asia’s program director for the Wildlife Conservation Society, commented on the wildlife trade.
"It's a professional, big-market business,” he says, “run by people who know what they're sourcing and know where they're selling it.”

As disheartening as news like this is, the fact that the smugglers were caught is something to celebrate. Previously, wildlife smuggling was a very neglected legal issue and many animals were never rescued. Now, much more emphasis is being placed on protecting animals from smugglers. Currently, the entire country of Cambodia has a task force of only twelve people to fight the illegal wildlife trade industry. There task force is also domestic, meaning they cannot stop smugglers once they cross Cambodia’s borders. Cambodia’s Wildlife Rescue Director, Nick Marx said "A stronger connection with ASEAN-WEN would be a big step forward, as it will mean that traders can still be arrested and animals rescued even after they leave the country."

On a happier note, the animals rescued are now back in their own habitats. They were released near Tonle Sap Lake, which is in the central region of Cambodia. The area they were released in is protected by the government, and their safety will hopefully be well maintained there.