Wildlife smuggling charges against Cambodian officials have caused only a “delay” in macaque shipments, a U.S. importer said, as the Agriculture Ministry offered no clarity on whether it was taking any additional precautions as the trade resumes.
The Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary’s community patrollers in Stung Treng province say they found signs indicating continued monkey-hunting during a trip into the protected forest last week.
A publicly traded American importer of laboratory monkeys says its supply from Cambodia has stopped after the U.S. indicted a Cambodian supplier for allegedly trafficking wild macaques, delaying its fourth-quarter earnings report as two of its subsidiaries face grand jury subpoenas related to the case.
Monkey exporter Vanny Bio-Research said it would “stand firm by its business model” and denied a U.S. court indictment that it was shipping thousands of endangered wild macaques overseas.
Workers at the Vanny Bio Research farm speak of X-rays to check newly arriving monkeys for airgun pellets and packing animals into crates for flights. It’s grueling work for under $200 a month to supply overseas laboratories with animals, they say.
Residents near the hills of Pursat’s Veal Veng district acknowledge there’s plenty of wild monkey hunting in the area, but the animals are getting harder to find. Prices have shot up in recent years, especially for monkeys caught while they are small, they say.
The Agriculture Ministry backed two of its employees who have been charged with smuggling long-tailed macaques — and one of whom was arrested in the U.S. on Wednesday — and said it would make the “utmost efforts” to absolve them.
Emails and bank transfer details collected by U.S. investigators allege the Forestry Administration director used ministry staff to capture thousands of wild monkeys for illegal export — and that they waited until after the 2018 election to avoid scrutiny — while also requesting a large donation to the ruling CPP.
An Agriculture Ministry official was arrested in New York — and the Forestry Administration’s director is also wanted — for a U.S. felony indictment over smuggling long-tailed macaques.
An animal rights wants Egyptair to stop transporting long-tailed macaques bred in Cambodia and headed for laboratories in the U.S. Cambodia won another gold medal at the SEA games, taking its tally to five golds.
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