MAINICHI DAILY NEWS (Tokyo, Japan) 23 September 06 Indonesian gets 4 months prison, fine for smuggling reptile skins to Singapore
Singapore (AP): An Indonesian seaman has been sentenced to four months in jail and fined 10,000 Singapore dollars (US$6,315) for smuggling 11 bales of reptile skins into Singapore, a newspaper reported Saturday.
Ali Mirhan, 24, was arrested Thursday and pleaded guilty to the charges, the Straits Times reported.
Court officials were not immediately available to confirm the charges and sentencing.
The newspaper said Mirhan pleaded guilty to importing 104 monitor lizard skins, six blood python skins and about 4,080 reticulated python skins from Indonesia without a permit. The report said the skins were worth about S$250,000 (US$158,000).
The reptiles are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
Ali reportedly said he was paid a small sum of money by a man in Indonesia to bring the reptile skins to Singapore, and was promised another S$50 (US$32) if they were successfully delivered.
The newspaper report said he is unable to pay the court-imposed fine and so will serve another two months in prison.
Environmental and wildlife groups say Singapore serves as a major transshipment area for wildlife smuggling, primarily from Indonesia. The tiny nation amended the law in March to toughen penalties for the illegal trade of animals.
Indonesian gets 4 months prison