A Blue tree monitor, which was rescued from the illegal wildlife trade, is now part of the Singapore Zoo's Reptopia section. - Photo: Mandai Wildlife Group
SINGAPORE: Wildlife trading and keeping scheduled species like flying foxes will be considered serious offences in Singapore under the Organised Crime Act (OCA) from Friday (Aug 30).
Offenders risk jail sentences of up to 20 years, said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in a statement on Aug 29.
The law covers offences assessed to pose a serious threat to public safety and security, and those associated with organised crime. They include drug-related offences and unlicensed moneylending.
The ministry said that the decision to include wildlife trade offences under the law was a proactive move to deter organised crime groups from wildlife trading in Singapore.
“International wildlife trafficking operates through a sophisticated cross-border supply chain. There is a risk that organised crime groups in Singapore could get involved in the trade,” said the ministry.
“The inclusion of wildlife trade offences as serious offences in the schedule of the OCA is thus a proactive measure to enhance deterrence, and empower the authorities to enforce against and cripple the operations of these organised crime groups, should such activities emerge in Singapore in the future.”
MHA said that while past cases of wildlife trade offences investigated by the National Parks Board (NParks) did not show links to organised crime groups in Singapore, it does not rule out such a possibility in the future.
The decision to include wildlife trade offences under the OCA was made in consultation with the Ministry of National Development, MHA added.
The import and export of scheduled species without a permit under the Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act will be considered a serious offence under the OCA.
Scheduled species include animals like the leopard cat, dugong, the Sunda pangolin and the flying fox.
The killing, trapping or keeping of wildlife and the illegal sale or export of wildlife under the Wildlife Act will also be included under the OCA.
MHA said the OCA was enacted in 2015 to provide law enforcement agencies with additional levers to deal with organised crime activities in Singapore.
To allow law enforcement here to take more effective action against organised crime groups, the OCA empowers the courts to impose enhanced penalties for offences listed as serious offences under the Act.
Depending on the facts and circumstances of the case, a person who commits such offences could face up to 20 years in jail.
Prevention orders may also be granted by the courts to prevent, restrict, or disrupt the involvement of individuals in organised crime groups.
Furthermore, the OCA allows benefits from organised crime activities to be confiscated, to ensure those involved are deprived of their ill-gotten gains.
In 2023, at least 30 cases of pet animal and wildlife smuggling were detected by the authorities in Singapore, with the largest seizure involving 337 birds squeezed into plastic boxes.
Since 2021, NParks has seized 180 wildlife in cases that involved suspects who had peddled these animals on online platforms such as Telegram.
According to NParks, there were one to eight instances of wildlife smuggling detected at land checkpoints each year between 2019 and 2023. - The Straits Times/ANN
