Two Vietnamese arrested in Russia for slaughtering Siberian tiger
Russian police have arrested two Vietnamese men who allegedly killed and trafficked parts of the endangered Siberian tiger, local media reported.
A video clip posted on Vesti.ru on May 16 said the men, whose identities were not revealed, previously posted their offers to sell tiger parts online.
Moscow police set up a sting, masquerading as potential buyers to contact the pair and later arrested them.
Following a raid on the pair’s premises, the police found 59 tiger teeth, four sets of tiger bones, 15 kilograms of tiger meat, a set of tiger skin and a frozen tiger head.
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| A screenshot shows tiger teeth and head seized from the houses of two Vietnamese men' in Moscow. Photo: Vesti.ru |
Following a raid on the pair’s premises, the police found 59 tiger teeth, four sets of tiger bones, 15 kilograms of tiger meat, a set of tiger skin and a frozen tiger head.
The Siberian (or Amur) tigers are the world's largest cats. They live primarily in eastern Russia's birch forests, though some exist in China and North Korea.
There are an estimated 400 to 500 Siberian tigers living in the wild, and recent studies suggest that these numbers are stable, according to National Geographic.