Cops steal 1,000 animals

Subject: Cops steal 1,000 animals Mon May 11, 2009 4:13 am

SAN JUAN (Puerto Rico) - FOUR police officers in Trinidad intercepted a smuggling boat at gunpoint and stole 1,000 endangered birds and monkeys along with 400 pounds of wild animal meat, authorities said on Tuesday.

The boat had sailed from Venezuela carrying more than 500 bull finches, 300 picoplat songbirds and an assortment of monkeys - all crammed into tiny cages piled up on the craft, officials said. The illicit load was estimated to be worth about US$500,000 (S$739,000).

Cops steal 1,000 animals Animals-AP

Trinidad officials got a tip about Saturday's alleged hijacking and investigators found birds and monkeys in people's homes, in pet shops and even along roads in Port-of-Spain, the capital, senior game warden Samsundar Ramdeen said.

Officials said the four officers face several charges including possession of protected animals without a permit. They said the birds and monkeys are protected species under the Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna, which requires licenses for importing and exporting.

LNK

Cops steal 1,000 animals

Cops steal 1,000 animals

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