Indonesia smugglers stuffed exotic birds in pipes
Jakarta : Smugglers who allegedly stuffed 125 exotic birds into drain pipes have been arrested in Indonesia, officials said yesterday, as part of a bid to clamp down on a lucrative illegal trade in wildlife.
Four men have been charged after 41 endangered white cockatoos and 84 eclectus parrots were discovered squashed into plastic piping that had been cut and sealed at each end by wire.
Police said the men were arrested in four separate locations in eastern Indonesia, and are part of a suspected wildlife
trafficking ring.
They face a maximum five years in prison and 100 million Rupiah ($7,400) fine if found guilty.
The vast jungles of Indonesia are home to 131 threatened bird species, according to wildlife trade watchdog TRAFFIC, more than any other country except Brazil.
But there is also large-scale illegal trading of birds, which sees them sold in giant avian markets in Indonesia’s major cities, or smuggled abroad.
Exotic birds are usually poached and trafficked by smuggling gangs for sale as pets and as status symbols.
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