There are pets, and there are pets: a car wash worker in Johor Baru has been fined RM35,000 or eight months’ jail after pleading guilty to illegal possession of a sun bear.
Mohd Roshdam Bilal, 29, pleaded guilty to having the protected animal in his possession at a shoplot in Jalan Tun Razak, Johor Baru, on May 13.
Roshdam was charged under Section 68 (1) (a) of the Wildlife Conservation Act, which carries a maximum fine of RM100,000, or a jail term of not more than three years, or both upon conviction.
As Roshdam, who was not represented in court, did not settle the fine, JB Sessions Court judge Azura Alwi oredered his eight month prison sentence to begin from the date of arrest.
The two-year old sun bear was found locked in a cage in the shoplot and was probably in the process of being sold to local restaurants in the area, The Star Online reports. The sun bear is a protected species under the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010, and is hunted for its paws, which are an ingredient used to make medicinal soup.
The soup has not been proven to have any medicinal value, but a bowl of it can fetch prices of between RM400 to RM900.
Hopefully the two Chinese pandas heading our way tomorrow will receive much better treatment in Malaysia than this poor little fella.
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