“The same person arrested last time has now been arrested twice before and is currently before the prosecutor’s office, but has now committed the same offence again,” Karon Police Chief Pol Col Khundet Na Nongkhai told The Phuket News today (Nov 7).
“We are detaining the woman at the police station for further questioning and will submit the case to the prosecutor to pay fines and face punishment in accordance with the law. Officers are continuing to expand their investigation in order to identify other offenders,” he added.
The arrest was made at the Karon Night Market last night (Nov 6) by a team led by Karon Deputy Mayor Trin Thipmongkol, joined by municipal officers and five officials from Khao Phra Thaeo Wildlife Sanctuary. Officers found a slow loris being taken to a foreign tourist to pose for photographs.
The woman arrested was charged with illegal possession of protected wildlife under the Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act.
The animal will be transferred to the Phang Nga Wildlife Breeding Station for rehabilitation before being released back into the wild, Pol Col Khundet confirmed.
Despite repeated crackdowns, officers say the same suspect was arrested just weeks earlier on Oct 10 for the same charge.
Phuket MP Chalermpong Saengdee of the People’s Party said the continuing problem reflects both weak deterrence and lack of public awareness.
“Some tourists think it’s harmless to take a picture, but every photo encourages another animal to be taken from the forest,” he said.
He added that slow lorises are nocturnal and suffer greatly when exposed to bright lights and crowds.
“These animals look cute, but what people don’t see is the suffering – many have their fangs cut, many are taken young and can never survive again in nature,” he said.
Mr Chalermpong urged visitors and residents not to support wildlife exploitation and to report sightings to the Department of National Parks 24-hour hotline:1362.
Additional reporting by Eakkapop Thongtub