Carcasses of protected animals seized from suspected Myanmar poachers
Two alleged poachers from Myanmar were arrested at the Thong Pha Phum National Park in Kanchanaburi province on Wednesday (May 13).
Forest rangers seized shotguns and carcasses of protected animals from the suspects.
Jaroen Jaichon, chief of the national park, said that the rangers caught the suspects at Hindad subdistrict in Thong Pha Phum district.
“One suspect is Thun Thun Le, aged 40, and the other is Le [no last name], aged 23. Both are Myanmar nationals,” he said. “They were caught while riding a motorcycle out of the forest, each carrying a shotgun, and a fertilizer bag containing animal carcasses was strapped to the back of the vehicle.”
Officials inspected the bag and reportedly found carcasses of a brush-tailed porcupine weighing 3kg, a roughneck monitor lizard weighing 1.5kg and a giant flying lemur weighing 2kg. All animals are listed as protected species under the Wild Animal Reservation and Protection Act.
The two suspects reportedly confessed that they had gone into the forest on May 12 to hunt wild animals and spent a night there. They also said they intended to sell the carcasses, or cook them as food in case they could not find a buyer.
Park rangers handed over the suspects, the firearms, vehicle and other evidence to Thong Pha Phum police to pursue legal actions.
