(JP)Orangutan trader handed 32-month jail term

November 8, 2001

With thanks to all those who supported us during our

campaign by contacting the chief district prosecutor

of Osaka and other people as well as the Japanese

media.

Masako Miyaji

ALIVE

on behalf of OSAKA 4

Orangutan trader handed 32-month jail term

OSAKA -- A man who bought orangutans and other

endangered species he knew had been imported illegally

was Thursday handed down a 32-month jail term and

fined 2.5 million yen.

In handing down the Osaka District Court ruling on the

former pet shop company president, Hiroharu Kaito,

Presiding Judge Shohei Matsuyama said Kaito's purchase

of the animals was selfish and deserved harsh

criticism.

" Buying the animals to lift store profits despite

knowing that they were rare was self-centered and

evil, " he said. " Under the (Washington) Treaty, which

is designed to prevent reckless hunting, the

defendant's actions should be harshly criticized. "

40-year-old Kaito bought four orangutans for 1.85

million yen from a 47-year-old man on two occasions in

December 1998 and April 1999 despite knowing they had

been illegally imported from Indonesia, the court

heard. He was also convicted of buying three other

types of endangered animals from a 69-year-old broker

between September and October 1998.

The two animal importers have been found guilty of

their crimes.

Under the Convention on International Trade in

Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES),

trading in orangutans is prohibited. (Mainichi

Shimbun, Nov. 8, 2001)

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