Smuggled Turtles Discovered in Kampong Chhnang Province

A driver’s assistant has been arrested for smuggling 18 turtles hidden in mattress covers in a truck from Thailand on Saturday in Kampong Chhnang’s Toul Kralanh village, according to officials.

Deputy provincial police chief Chun Tharith said witnesses saw the turtles, weighing 141kgs, being unloaded with the driver’s assistant guarding them. Authorities arrived at the scene around 12 pm.

“We saw the goods that were unloaded along with the driver assistant guarding them, and I ordered the expert forces to go there and found the turtles at around 12 pm.”

He added that the assistant, 22-year-old Oeun Samnang, was unaware that it was illegal to transport the wildlife.

“I did not know that the goods are illegal and the driver asked me to unload the goods there and said he [the driver] will come back to pick up, but after all he did not come,” he told police.

Mr. Samnang told authorities that they were transporting the goods from Poipet to Phnom Penh, with customs officials attempting but failing to stop the truck for not paying import taxes on hundreds of kilograms of mattress covers and plastic material, but added they were unaware about the creatures onboard.

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