ASIATODAY.ID, JAKARTA – The Indonesian government through the Directorate General of Law Enforcement Team, Ministry of Forestry, has succeeded in thwarting online trade in protected animal body parts from Indonesia to foreign countries including the United States (US) and United Kingdom (UK).
The team also succeeded in securing two perpetrators on March 18, 2025 in Sukabumi Regency, West Java Province. The two perpetrators, BH, acted as the owner and NJ acted as the seller abroad.
From the hands of both of them, protected wildlife body parts were secured in the form of 70 primate skulls (orangutans, macaques and monkeys), 6 hornbill beaks, 2 bear skulls, 2 deer pig skulls, 8 bear claws, 2 shark teeth, and 4 civet skulls.
“Crimes related to protected flora and fauna are transnational crimes and are one of the crimes with the fourth largest turnover in the world after drug crimes, illegal firearms and human trafficking,” said the Director General of Forestry Law Enforcement, Dwi Januanto Nugroho, March 19, 2025.
From this disclosure, it is known that hunting of animal specimens such as orangutans is still happening. Therefore, the Directorate General of Forestry Law Enforcement has formed a Special Team for Transnational Forestry and Wildlife Crimes and a Special Team for Money Laundry.
With that, Dwi Januanto stated that his staff will also enforce the law up to benefit ownership and collaborate with other law enforcement agencies both domestically and abroad.
“The Forestry Law Enforcement Team continues to be committed to uncovering criminal cases related to protected Plants and Wildlife by collaborating with domestic ministries/agencies and foreign institutions such as the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS),” he said.
Given the importance of the function of protected animals for the preservation of biodiversity and ecosystems as well as conservation areas, Dwi Januanto stated that firm action must be taken against the perpetrators of this crime.
“The perpetrators must be punished as severely as possible, so that there is a deterrent effect and an example for other perpetrators,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Director of Forestry Criminal Enforcement, Rudianto Saragih Napitu explained that the disclosure of this case was a collaboration between the Ministry of Forestry and the Indonesian Police Intelligence and Security Agency as well as an international collaboration with the USFWS.
The disclosure of the protected animal body parts circulation case began with information from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) about the confiscation of shipments of protected Plants and Wildlife from Indonesia in the United States about 2 weeks ago. The information was then followed up by the Cyber Patrol Team of the Directorate General of Law Enforcement of the Ministry of Forestry and succeeded in tracking and profiling the sales account. The Team then carried out an Operation and succeeded in securing 2 perpetrators.
Based on the perpetrator’s information, the person concerned has been buying and selling for 1 year and has made more than 10 transactions to the United States and England.
For their actions, the perpetrators are threatened with criminal penalties as referred to in Article 40A paragraph (1) Letter f Jo Article 21 paragraph (2) letter c of Law Number 32 of 2024 concerning amendments to Law Number 5 of 1990 concerning Conservation of Biological Natural Resources and their Ecosystems with the threat of a maximum prison sentence of 15 years and a maximum fine of 5 billion Rupiah.
“Currently, we will continue to conduct in-depth and development to uncover the network of trade in body parts of protected wild animals both domestically and abroad. This is a form of government commitment to protecting Indonesia’s biological natural resources, especially protected Plants and Wildlife from various threats and crimes,” he said. (AT Network)
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