CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – Four suspected illegal wildlife traders, including two minors, were arrested Saturday in Barangay San Rafael, Guagua, this province for selling a monitor lizard (Varanus marmoratus), locally known as “bayawak.” The suspects were arrested in a joint operation conducted by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Guagua police.
Police Lt. Julius Javier, chief of the Guagua Municipal Police Station, said their agents posed as buyers and using marked money, were able to buy one live bayawak for P1,000 from Raymond Sto. Domingo, 27, resident of Barangay Tokwing, and Marlon Dacani, 37, of Barangay Babo Sakan, both in Porac, this province, and two minors aged 15 and 17, residents of Barangay San Pedro, Sasmuan, also in this province.
Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer (PENRO) Laudemir Salac said the DENR would file charges against the suspects for violating Republic Act No. 9147 or the Wildlife Law while the two minors will be referred to the appropriate Municipal Social Work Development Office (MSWDO).
“Collecting, hunting, or possessing and trading of wildlife is punishable by a maximum imprisonment of one year and a fine of up to P1 million, depending on the species, under the law,” Salac said in a statement.
He said the bayawak which was sold has already been rescued and would undergo rehabilitation in a wildlife center before being released back into its natural habitat.
DENR Region 3 director Paquito Moreno Jr. warned the public to refrain from catching and selling wildlife, and even eating its bushmeat to prevent the spread of another disease.
“If COVID-19 pandemic held a lesson for us, it’s that when it comes to wildlife, we have to live and let live,” he said, adding that consumption of wildlife is not just illegal but also exposes people to the dangers of catching and spreading zoonotic diseases.