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BREAKING NEWS (18th-25th March) Smuggled orangutan seized at Bali airport 2
BREAKING NEWS (18th-25th March) Smuggled orangutan seized at Bali airport
Smuggled orangutan seized at Bali airport
A Russian man has been arrested in Bali on suspicion of trying to smuggle a young orangutan out of Indonesia
The two-year-old male was found drugged inside a rattan basket when Andrei Zhestkov was stopped at security at Denpasar airport on Friday night.
Mr Zhestkov is said to have told officials he was given the primate by a friend who bought it for $3,000.
Oragutans are a protected species and Mr Zhestkov could face up to five years in prison if convicted.
“The Russian also had injections and drugs in his bag. He said he planned to re-administered the drugs when they transited” in South Korea, Dewa Delanata, from the airport´s quarantine office, told the Jakarta Post.
Two live geckos and five lizards were also found in the passenger´s luggage.
According to the authorities, the man, 27, said he was convinced by his friend, also Russian, that it would be okay to take the orangutan back to Russia to keep it as a pet.
Orangutans are three extant species of great apes native to Indonesia and Malaysia. Orangutans are currently only found in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra. Classified in the genus Pongo, orangutans were originally considered to be one species. They are the most arboreal of the great apes and spend most of their time in trees.
Orangutans face threats from poachers and farmers in Indonesia. The animal is being looked after by the Bali Natural Resources Conservation Agency.