Tiger cub seized from Dubai street, owner faces legal action

Dubai: Teams from Dubai Police and Dubai Municipality have seized a tiger cub from a street in Dubai.

According to Colonel Khalfan Al Jallaf, Director of the Environmental Crimes Division at Dubai Police, residents reported seeing the tiger cub on the loose in a residential area.

“With the help of Dubai Municipality, the tiger cub was seized and his owner was identified,” said Col Al Jallaf.

The owner claimed that he bought the tiger cub online after seeing an advertisement on social media.

“The owner kept exotic animals as a hobby. He didn’t notice the tiger cub escaping. The cub was found wandering near the owner’s residence,” added Col Al Jallaf.

Legal action was taken against the owner while the cub was sheltered by the municipality. A full health check was done before the animal was transferred to Dubai Safari for rehabilitation.

The owner was charged with illegally possessing a wild animal.

What the law says

According to Col Al Jallaf, whoever possesses wild animals for trafficking purposes will be sentenced to imprisonment and/or fined no less than Dh50,000 and no more than Dh500,000, as per Article 19 of Federal Law no 22 for 2016 that regulates the possession, trading or breeding of dangerous animals.

Col Al Jallaf said the same law punishes anyone who takes out such wild animals in public places with a jail term of up to six months and/or fines between Dh10,000 and Dh500,000.

The Environmental Crimes Section has been established specially to crack down on violations related to illegal selling of animals and identify their owners.

The public have been urged call 901 to report illegal selling or buying of dangerous animals. They can call 999 to report stray wild animals.