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 According to
specialists, during the months of April and May the
populations of parrots and other birds are in their
fledging stage, which makes it easier for hunters or
nest looters to steal the birds. / Osa
Conservation Area courtesy photo
Police will conduct road operations to detect illegal trafficking in wildlife |
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 By the A.M. Costa Rica
staff
The Osa Conservation Area has announced that during the Easter holidays patrols and road operations will be carried out to stop people from stealing, hunting or selling wild animals. The operations on the road will be from Saturday 13 to Sunday 21, in Golfito*, Chacharita*, Palmar Sur*, and Osa*. Conservation specialists report that Costa Rica’s great natural wealth, approximately 8,500 species of plants, 220 species of reptiles, 160 species of amphibians, 205 species of mammals and 850 species of birds, make it a target for trafficking. The animals that are a target for the hunters are the green iguana, sloth bears, red-eyed frogs, howler monkeys, coati (Nasua narica), pumas, jaguar, exotic birds, deer, and crocodiles. In Costa Rica, according to Article 3 of the Wildlife Conservation Law "Wildlife that constitutes a renewable natural resource is declared public domain, which is part of the national heritage, and wild flora is declared of public interest", so having wild animals as pets, selling and hunting or extracting wild animals is prohibited. The law allows that, in addition to animal confiscation, sanctions of from ¢600,000 (about $991) to ¢17,048,000 (about $28,091), plus a sentence of up to 3 years in jail can be applied. According to specialists, during the months of April and May the populations of parrots and other birds are in their fledging stage, which makes it easier for hunters or nest looters to steal the birds. Another crime is the theft of wild flora which includes plants like orchids or tabacones (Anthurium cubense). The most recent sentence in a case of wild animals traffickers, as A.M. Costa Rica reported on March 12, came from the Prosecutor's Office of Environmental Affairs and confirmed that the Criminal Flagrancy Court of Alajuela found two German citizens surnamed Goldnik, age 22, and Ollesch, age 54, guilty of animal trafficking. The court reported that "through a flagrant trial, an expeditious sentence of five years in prison against the two foreigners who were found guilty of committing a crime of violation of the Wildlife Law." |
A flagrant crime is a legal term, indicating that a criminal has been caught in the act of committing an offense. The colloquial "caught red-handed" is the English equivalent. However, the two men will not go to jail, because the judge granted them a special benefit. "This means that they will not go to prison, but if the two men commit a crime in our country, during the term of the sentence, five years, the benefit will be revoked and they will serve the prison sentence," said the court. In addition, the sentence was reported to Interpol and to Europol to activate an international alert each time the sentenced men enter a country. This case began in February, when officials of the Juan Santamaría Airport* in Alajuela, with the collaboration of German officials, detained the two German citizens. The police received a call from officials of the National Animal Health Service who suspected that those German tourists intended to leave the country with several wild animal species. The National Animal Health Service had received that alert from Germany agents. Agents at the airport set up an additional luggage screening for people leaving the country. "The airport police inspected the luggage of the suspects, recovering the species that were inside the checked baggage; there were several containers with spiders and live ants among others," said the police on its report. In the luggage of Ollesch, police found 354 containers with different species of ants, spiders, and a scorpion. Goldnik's luggage held 35 bottles containing ants. The animals were confiscated by the officers of the National Animal Health Service. Conservationists call on the public to report any suspicion of hunting, sale, theft or trafficking of wildlife on confidential phone number 1192. ----------
Have you heard of wildlife traffickers in your community? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to: news@amcostarica.com *Link to reach the place. |
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