Man on trial for selling endangered animals

A man is accused of importing and selling endangered animals and plant species without proper permits.

The 33-year-old Dutch defendant went on trial at Dubai Court of First Instance on Monday.

It is alleged he kept the creatures, including an unidentified Amazon bird, roosters bred for fighting, and 27 rare palm trees at a farm in Al Khwaneej, Dubai.

The defendant is also charged with failing to provide the necessary care for the animals, establishing a veterinary clinic on his farm without obtaining a license and leaving dead animals in cages where live animals allegedly fed on them.

Official records state that the ministry of environment and water was tipped off about the defendant and sent an inspector to his home.

“There were dead animals in some cages and other animals were eating them,” the Emirati inspector noted in records.

The defendant claimed the animals were fed and their cages cleaned twice a day.

He said the rare species only made up between five to 10 per cent of the animals at the farm.

He insisted he had the proper permits to import the animals from the Netherlands but did not have a permit to possess them.

He denied all the charges against him and the case was adjourned.