Charges have been filed against 9 Chinese fishermen who allegedly poached endangered sea turtles in the South China Sea.
Charges have been filed against 9 Chinese fishermen who allegedly poached endangered sea turtles from the South China Sea.
According to Prosecutor Allen Ross Rodriguez, from the Philippines, the men could spend up to 20 years behind bars for poaching the hundreds of sea turtles.
On May 6th of this year, the Philippine National Police Maritime Group Special Boat Unit arrested 11 Chinese fisherman following an inventory check on two boats that was anything but routine.
Over 550 sea turtles were seized from the vessels in various conditions, including approximately 175 live turtles, some of which are critically endangered, along with over 200 stuffed turtles, 2 dried ones, roughly 90 dead turtles and 76 upper shells.
All the living turtles were released back into the wild shortly after they were discovered. The sea turtles were photographed, however, to serve as evidence in the case.
The 9 fishermen charged were all onboard or affiliated with the vessels. The other two suspects were released because they are minors.
Unfortunately the Philippines encounters a fair share of poaching. Sea turtles are a target for poachers because there is an abundance of them in the area due to the ample sea grass beds and the high demand for their meat, eggs and shells in many Asian countries.
