Elephant poachers caught red-handed in Indonesia
Tusks confiscated from the elephant poaching gang by the police in Riau
The police in Riau caught the suspects – 5 poachers, 1 buyer and his 2 assistants – red-handed on their way to Pekanbaru with two 1.5 metre-long tusks. In addition, the arresting officers confiscated a gun, which one of the poachers admitted had been used to kill a bull elephant in Mandau-Bengkalis District a couple of days before.
The poachers also confessed to killing three elephants recently in Tesso Nilo in Kampar District. Taken to the area by the police, the men led them to where the three carcasses lay – one female and two males. And as if that were not enough, they also admitted to killing more elephants last September in Jambi, where the police now plan to charge them in relation to those crimes.
“WWF commends the Riau police for breaking up this major criminal gang, which has poached elephants in three different districts,” said Arnold Sitompul, Conservation Director of WWF-Indonesia, which worked with the authorities to help them locate the dead elephants and gather critical evidence. “The authorities’ actions have shown that tackling organized wildlife crime is high on their agenda. But arresting these suspects is not enough, they must now face justice.”
WWF has been very active in the region, especially in the Tesso Nilo forest block, where it has intensified its motorbike patrols in order to better cover the entire elephant range and so help to mitigate potential human-elephant conflict. It has also been urging companies that hold concessions in the area to increase their patrols to prevent elephants from coming into conflict with communities – and from being poached.
Now that the suspects have been arrested, WWF will keep a close eye on the case to ensure that it is brought to court and that those found guilty receive the maximum sentences.
The last elephant poaching case in Riau was in 2005, when police caught up with a poaching gang. Three of the suspects were killed, while the survivor was convicted and sentenced to 12 ½ years in jail.
“Hundreds of elephants have been killed since the last poacher faced trial so this current case is extremely important as it will show other poachers that the days of impunity are coming to an end,” said Dr Sunarto, WWF's Wildlife Specialist. “Hopefully, this case will also expose the broader ivory trafficking networks and spur the authorities to make further arrests.”
Tusks confiscated from the elephant poaching gang by the police in Riau
Sumatran elephant and its calf in Tesso Nilo National Park in Indonesia.
