Malaysian court issues record penalties in case involving over 1,000 wildlife parts
A Malaysian court has issued a landmark penalty of almost MYR 129 million (USD32 million) and over 70 years total jail time to three Vietnamese nationals convicted of illegally keeping an incredible stash of wildlife parts from a long list of iconic and endangered species.
The trio were arrested in November 2023, in the state of Pahang where raids uncovered a stunning array of species and wildlife parts 492 bear parts alongside parts of pangolins, leopards, tigers, serow, Asian golden cat and elephant.
Bui Thi Ngan, her brother Bui Van Noi and their stepbrother Bui Van Anh faced 15 charges under the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 which covered illegally keeping species and snares.
However, they will serve only 12 years in jail, as the judge ordered all the jail terms issued under the many charges to run concurrently. The court also ordered an additional jail term if the fines are not paid.
“The wildlife loss in this case is immeasurable, but this historic sentence sends the sternest message that wildlife crime isn’t a trivial matter. There are consequences and steep price to pay,” said Kanitha Krishnasamy, Director for TRAFFIC in Southeast Asia.
Ten out of two dozen wildlife species seized are listed as Totally Protected, with seven falling under a specific section of the Act which carries some of the most stringent penalties for wildlife offences, including mandatory imprisonment and fines.
Sessions Court Judge Maimoonah Aid said details of a three-month enforcement surveillance operation prior to the bust had left no doubt of the offenders' link to the location and wildlife parts.
Department of Wildlife and National Parks (PERHILITAN) deputy public prosecutor Amanina Mohamad Anuar pushed for a deterrent penalty pointing to the number of wild animals sacrificed to make up the thousand parts the group had amassed.
"Incidences like this reinforce that this is about organised criminality. It takes dedication and resources from PERHILITAN for investigating this case that led to the bust and we hope the federal government continue to invest in resources for them," Krishnasamy said.
The case began with a massive seizure of wildlife parts in a house near a premier national park in Malaysia – Taman Negara National Park – one of the last remaining safe havens of the Critically Endangered Malayan tiger and a myriad other species.
Over the years heightened enforcement scrutiny around this national park has uncovered persistent wildlife poaching and trafficking threat in the area.
TRAFFIC data shows that there have been at least 28 known seizure incidents involving wild animals within a 30 km radius of Taman Negara between 2019 and 2024. These incidents have led to at least 74 arrests.
But the scale of the seizure in Panching made it a standout among others. The trio are thought to have driven a significant loss in the biologically rich area surrounding their operations base.
The parts found in the rooms, kitchen and car at the double-story house where they lived equalled dozens of leopards, bears and tigers. The hundreds of bear claws alone represent at least 20 individual bears.
Although they have lived in Malaysia for a long time – Ngan, for six or seven years and Bahasa Malaysia-speaking Anh off and on for close to 20 years – it is unclear how long they had been involved in collecting and keeping wildlife parts.
The three are the latest in a line of Vietnamese nationals caught with multiple wildlife parts in Malaysia over the past years.
Notes:
Monitoring and reporting on this case was carried out under the "Transboundary problem-solving to prevent the international trafficking of Malayan tigers Project" funded by the UK Government through the "Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund"
