San Luis, Batangas – The police filed charges of illegal trading, possession, transport and maltreatment of endangered species against six alleged poachers for violating the Republic Act 9147 or the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act at the Batangas Provincial Prosecutor’s Office on July 26.
Senior Supt. Alberto Supapo, Batangas provincial police chief, identified the suspects as Melchor, Limlengco, 37; Armando Ariola; Roderick Miranda, 32; Erick De La Cruz, 19; Gelfred Legarda, 26; and Jeffrey Almendraz, 21, respectively.
Three of the suspects were residents of Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, two others were from Biñan, Laguna and another one from Quezon, Palawan.
The suspects were arrested in a joint operation conducted by the Provincial Task Force Kalikasan, Batangas Provincial Police Office and San Luis Municipal Station on July 25 in an established checkpoint in Muzon Village of the said town.
According to Supapo, during the police’s search, the team discovered endangered wildlife species placed in 16 cages at the back portion of the van.
He said that the suspects failed to show necessary documents for possession of animals that’s why they immediately arrested them.
Seized from the suspects were 125 mynah birds, 47 Blue Naped parrots, three Palawan Leopard, two Palawan Hornbills and a Palawan Bear Cat, which are all included in the country’s list of vulnerable species.
Two of the seized mynah birds and a Palawan Leopard died reportedly due to stress. Eight more birds died the day after the recovered species were brought to the Parks and Wildlife Rescue Center in Quezon City.
“They were suffocated inside the cage. There were only 16 small cages for so many birds. They were overcrowded that’s why the birds died,” said Task Force Kalikasan Vice Chairman and Community Environment and Natural Resources Officer Laudemir Salac, adding that the recovered species could reach an estimated worth of P1 million in the black market.
In an interview, he said that the species may have been hunted in Quezon town in Palawan and were ferried by ship to Batangas through the remote villages of San Luis.
He said that the suspects could have sold the animals in Manila had the team not arrested them in their checkpoint.
Quoting an information from the Protected Areas Wildlife Bureau, he said that a mynah bird is often sold at P3,500 while a parrot can be bought between P3,000 to P5,000.
“Perhaps this is a lesson to those who attempt to smuggle illegal wildlife particularly from Palawan, the last frontier that we really have to protect because there are a lot of species, wildlife, plants that are only found there,” Salac said.
“This also serves as a warning so that they won’t do these things again and they should avoid making Batangas as a trans-shipment area for illegal trading of wildlife,” he added.
The suspects are temporarily detained at the Batangas Provincial Police as of press time. SLI tried to get in touch with the suspects but they refused to give any comment.
The Philippine Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act prohibits the hunting, killing, collecting, possession, trading and maltreatment of wildlife species, subject to fine penalties of P30,000 to P300,000 and an imprisonment of two years and one day to four years, depending on the court’s discretion.( Marlon Alexander Luistro) Photos from Batangas Provincial Police
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