Woman Arrested After Attempting to Sell Jaguar Pelt on Facebook

One Facebook post has landed a Belize City woman behind bars after she tried to sell a jaguar pelt online. Thanks to quick tips from the public, the Belize Forestry Department and police teamed up and tracked her down. That’s how Lidear Lino was caught with a small jaguar pelt, which showed signs the animal had been shot. Under Belize’s Wildlife Protection Act, jaguars are strictly off-limits; it’s illegal to hunt, harm, or even harass them. Deputy Chief Forest Officer John Pinelo Jr. tells us what kind of penalties Lino could now be facing.

 

John Pinelo Jr., Deputy Chief Forest Officer, Belize Forest Department

“So we got a call about a person posting on Facebook. That they have a Jaguar pelt for sale or a Jaguar skin. And we did our investigation and we found out where the person was selling the pelt. And we did an operation along with the police from Ity. We visited the person’s house and we managed to get the pill from the person. The person was taken. And this is in Belize City. The person was taken to the police station and was charged under the Forest Act for possession of illegal forest produce.”

 

Britney Gordon

“And what happens to the pelt, not that it’s been seized. And  what type of sentence are we looking at for something like that?”

 

John Pinelo Jr.

“Under the Forest Act you can be charged up to ten thousand. That is up to the judge to make the decision. The pelt, we basically just store it in a store room. We don’t want it to be used for any exhibition. We don’t want anybody to be seeing it and thinking that, oh, it’s something that I like, maybe I want one. This, we are actively pursuing constantly. Reports of people selling animals. The last time we got a report that somebody was selling parrots at the crooked tree Junction and we successfully visited the place and we. Captured. We got the Ja the parrots. The person who was the property owner was not there, so we were unable to charge anybody, but we did get the parrots and they were taken to rehabilitation center.”