A judge in the province of Guayas imposed a one-year custodial sentence on a woman who was arrested for illegal possession of 13 charapas turtles (Podocnemis unifilis) in Guayaquil.
The defendant will serve her sentence in the Center for the Deprivation of Liberty of Adult Persons in Conflict with the Law for women, according to a statement from the Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition.
Technicians from this State portfolio transferred the reptiles and they were evaluated in a management center who keep them under observation. This species that lives in the tropical humid forest of the northern central Amazon is in a vulnerable conservation status, according to the Red List of Threatened Species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
“As the governing body of the environment and water, we absolutely reject this type of crime against wild flora and fauna and we urge citizens not to promote this market that alters ecosystems and biodiversity,” said Isabel Tamariz, Zonal 5 Environment director.
Turtles are one of the most trafficked species in Ecuador. In fact, in 2020 the Quito Zoo received a baby sea turtle that was removed from an Esmeraldas beach as a “souvenir”. Added to this is the attempt to traffic 185 baby turtles from Galapagos in March 2021. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
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