JAKARTA: The skin of a critically endangered Sumatran tiger and four foetuses have been confiscated after the arrest of several suspected poachers, Indonesian police said on Sunday (Dec 8).
The suspects may have been planning to sell the skin to a foreign collector, while its bones were earlier sold, possibly for use in medicinal products popular in some parts of Asia, the authorities said.
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It was not clear how the foetuses, which were kept in a jar, were to be used.
The evidence was presented by police at a press briefing after they announced three people had been arrested over the weekend.
"We suspect that they would sell the skin to collectors, not only in Indonesia," Edward Hutapea, wildlife enforcement chief in Pekanbaru on Sumatra island, said on Monday.
READ: Commentary: Tigers belong in the wild, not in our homes, the streets or farms
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The tiger foetuses in a jar. (Photo: AFP/Wahyudi)
The suspects had previously sold another tiger skin, but had yet to unload the second skin and foetuses, he said, adding that the unborn mammals were from the tiger sold earlier this year.
If convicted, the trio could face up to five years in prison.
