A man has been arrested while two of his accomplices are being hunted by police after being suspected of involvement in stealing turtle eggs at the Turtle Conservation and Information Centre in Cherating yesterday.
Acting Kuantan district police chief Superintendent Mohd Adli Mat Daud said the 51-year-old suspect was arrested at a house in Cherating around 1pm yesterday, and preliminary urine screening found the man tested positive for drugs.
He said police received a report about the incident from the Pahang Fisheries Department around 10am, Sunday (July 27), following a viral video on social media showing three men carrying a turtle at the popular tourist beach.
He said investigations found the incident occurred at 7am, the same day, and the three suspects are locals believed to be involved in turtle egg theft activities.
“The viral footage was recorded by a local tourist who came across the three suspects lifting a turtle at the beach.
“The suspects brought the reptile to a hole that had been pre-dug at the beach to speed up the process of the turtle laying eggs. The suspects are believed to have acted in this manner to take the turtle eggs for sale or illegal use,“ he said in a statement.
Mohd Adli said the identities of the two other suspects being hunted have been identified.
“The arrested suspect will be handed over to the Fisheries Department for further action.
“The case is being investigated under Section 27 of the Fisheries Act 1985, where no one is allowed to fish, disturb, harass, catch or take turtles. If convicted, they can be fined up to RM5,000,“ he added.
The police action comes after a group of men were recorded lifting a turtle believed to be coming ashore to lay eggs at a beach that went viral on social media, sparking public outrage.
Through a two-minute video uploaded on platform X around 11.57pm on Sunday, three men were seen in the sandy area lifting the reptile despite being warned by several other visitors.
