14 macaque carcasses found in house raid, wildlife trafficking suspects arrested

A recent raid in Cha-am district, Phetchaburi, led to the discovery of 14 deceased macaques and five more in distress, locked up without food or water. The provincial wildlife protection area director, Prawet Sunthornthai, led the wildlife conservation team that searched the rented house in Ban Khao Mainual, tambon Khao Yai, after receiving a tip from a neighbour.

The search followed the arrest of six members of a wildlife trafficking gang in the Muang district of Phetchaburi last week. Local police found the gang capturing long-tailed macaques in the foothills of Khao Luang, tambon Thongchai. The officers witnessed four men and two women using tranquilliser darts to catch the monkeys before apprehending them and saving over 10 macaques in the process. The authorities also seized three vehicles, 80 tranquilliser darts, a bag of animal feed, and other items from the group.

During interrogation, the suspects admitted to travelling from Sa Kaeo to capture macaques for a customer who would pay them between 1,000 and 2,000 baht for each animal. They insisted that they did not know the buyer and that this was their first time engaging in such activity.

The police charged the group with colluding to hunt wild animals without permission, illegal possession of wild animals, and illegally trading in wildlife, reported Bangkok Post.

In a separate development, the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources has launched a campaign against buying or consuming parrotfish. This comes after receiving a complaint about the sale of fish in Talat Ngern Vijit, Klong San district of Bangkok. Five shops at the market were found offering the fish for sale.