Jembrana Police Fails To Smuggle 19 Green Turtles

Public Relations DOC Jembrana Bali Police

JEMBRANA - Jembrana Resort Police (Polres), Bali thwarted the smuggling of 19 green turtles (Chelonia mydas), some of whom are more than 50 years old.

"We received information that there was a pick-up car carrying turtles. When we stopped the vehicle and carried out an inspection, we found turtles covered with tarpaulins," said Jembrana Police Chief AKBP I Dewa Gde Juliana, Monday, November 20.

He said the pickup car driven by RBD (29) from Gilimanuk Village, Melaya District was stopped while crossing Jalan Desa Baluk, Negara District, Saturday (18/11) towards midnight.

From Gilimanuk, the perpetrator deliberately took a rural road so that the officers would not know. Only occasionally enter the Denpasar-Gilimanuk highway when there is no inter-village road linkage," he said.

After being secured, the police immediately contacted several related parties such as the Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA), the Kurma Asih Turtle Conservation Group to experts from the Indonesian Animal Network (JSI) to save the turtles.

Meanwhile, turtle expert from the Indonesian Animal Network, Vemke Denhaas, said that the condition of the turtles, although they looked healthy, actually experienced stress because they had been out of the sea for too long.

"As soon as possible we will return these turtles to the sea to be fully healthy. Now we are still observing to anticipate if a turtle is sick," he said, quoted by ANTARA.

His party has taken an example of the turtle's blood, which is one of its functions to find out the origin of the protected animal.

"We see the age of this turtle varies. Some are over 50 years old, some are only 8 years old. Most of them are females," she said.

The plan is that after observing the Turtle Kurma Asih Conservation Group in Pericak Village, Jembarana District, the dozens of turtles will be released into the sea.

Meanwhile, the driver of the RBD pickup car underwent further legal proceedings, as well as the police confiscated a pickup with Nopol DK1169XX as evidence.