Man nabbed for possession, sale of tarantulas, pythons

By Ellalyn De Vera-Ruiz An information technology specialist has been arrested for alleged illegal possession and sale of live tarantulas and pythons worth at least P106,000 in Marikina City. Thirty-eight-year-old Rommel De la Cruz was allegedly selling the species to fund his travel as he starts a new job in Canada next month. He was apprehended last October 9 following a raid at his residence in Barangay Tumana by operatives of the Philippine Operations Group on Ivory and Illegal Wildlife Trade (Task Force POGI) under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). A composite team of wildlife law enforcers from various agencies, including the DENR’s Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) and the National Bureau of Investigation-Environmental Crime Division (NBI-ECD) arrested dela Cruz, who received the marked money from the NBI agents, who posed as buyers of a pair of tarantulas he was selling. After searching the residence, the task force found in dela Cruz’s possession 11 more tarantulas of different breeds—Brazilian Whiteknee (Acanthoscurria geniculata), Mexican Golden Redrump (Brachypelma albiceps), Mexican Pink (Brachypelma Klaasi), Mexican Redleg (Brachypelma emilia), Chilean Rose (Grammostola rosea) and Bolivian Redrump (Acanthoscurria chacoana). According to BMB senior ecosystems management specialist Rogelio Demellentes Jr., Dela Cruz “was selling off all the tarantulas at a discounted price of P20,000 so he could buy his plane ticket.” Demellentes said each tarantula could sell at P1,500 in the black market. The task force also recovered from Dela Cruz five ball pythons (Python reguis), which he was selling at a wholesale price of P86,000. Ball python, also known as the royal python, is named for its habit of curling itself up into a tight ball. It is listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora to regulate trade in the species to protect them from becoming threatened or extinct. NBI-ECD chief Czar Eric Nuqui said Dela Cruz was unable to present any permit or document proving that he was authorized to possess and trade wildlife species. He said Dela Cruz could be held liable for violating Republic Act 9147 or the Wildlife Conservation and Protection Act, which defines and penalizes illegal possession and trading of wildlife species. Under the law, violators could face a jail term of up to 12 years and a fine of not more than P1 million.