A Kaohsiung-registered fishing boat intercepted 30 nautical miles (55.6km) off Kaohsiung Harbor on Tuesday was found to be carrying 1,149 protected turtles, Coast Guard Administration (CGA) officers reported.
The captain of the ship, surnamed Sun (孫), together with one Taiwanese and two Indonesian crewmen, was taken ashore for questioning by the officers.
The four were later sent to the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning over potential violations of the Wildlife Conservation Act (野生動物保育法) and Smuggling Penalty Act (懲治走私條例).
The officers said the agency received a tip-off several months ago that Sun, 43, was planning to smuggle yellow-margined box turtles, a protected species, to China.
Sun’s vessel left Kaohsiung Harbor on Tuesday morning and headed for China at full speed.
The protected turtles were found on board after his boat was intercepted by a coast guard vessel.
The turtles were turned over to National Chung Hsing University.
Coast guard officers said that demand for yellow-margined box turtles has grown in recent years, as they have become an expensive and much-sought after pet in China.
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