Poacher arrested near Bhumibol Dam for illegal wildlife hunting
A task force comprising park rangers and military personnel apprehended a poacher suspected of using forest fires to drive wildlife into water before hunting them. The arrest took place near Bhumibol Dam, in Mae Ping National Park, Tak province.
On Tuesday, April 8, district chief Chaiwat Pradaphet and Prayut Waiwong, director of the 14th Conservation Area Office, conducted an investigation following the arrest. The park rangers, alongside soldiers from the 310th Military Circle and the 2nd Infantry Battalion of the 14th Infantry Regiment, captured a suspect involved in illegal wildlife hunting.
The arrest occurred in the Baan Na subdistrict, Sam Ngao district, after officials were ordered to patrol the area to prevent forest fires and enforce park laws.
During their patrol, officials encountered a suspicious man identified as Wasan, carrying a fertiliser sack. Upon inspection, the sack contained a barking deer head, pelt, innards, and ribs. Nearby, a single-barrel shotgun and 11 rounds of ammunition were discovered, along with a mobile phone.
Wasan admitted the firearm was his and confessed to hunting in the area. He revealed that the remaining animal carcasses were sold to Pipawan, who moored a houseboat in Baan Na.
Wasan was charged under the National Park Act 2019 for enticing or harming wildlife, bringing hunting tools or weapons into the park without permission, and carrying firearms in the park.
Additionally, under the Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act 2019, Wasan was charged with possessing protected wildlife or their carcasses, hunting protected species, and possessing firearms and ammunition without authorisation, reported KhaoSod.
The charges also included carrying firearms in towns or public areas without justified reason. Wasan was handed over to Sam Ngao district police for further legal proceedings.
In similar news, two wild gaurs were discovered shot dead in the Wang Nam Khiao district of Nakhon Ratchasima, with police suspecting poachers targeted them for their meat.
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