A collector from the region of Nice (Alpes-Maritimes) who owned a thousand stuffed birds including nearly 250 specimens held illegally, was sentenced to three months in prison, we learned from Friday. the French Biodiversity Office (OFB).
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The conviction relates to the facts of naturalization and possession of protected animals, importation of species regulated by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites) and possession of prohibited weapons.
Pronounced by the Nice Criminal Court, this prison sentence accompanied by the suspended sentence is accompanied by a ban on possession of a weapon for three years and 8,000 euros in damages for the benefit of the League for the Protection of Birds (LPO) .
21 weapons seized
In 2019, the environmental inspectors of the departmental service of the OFB placed under surveillance the actions of this man suspected of practicing, during his hunting activities, samples of protected wildlife, with the aim of naturalize them. "
In total, this frantic collector was unable to prove, for 244 specimens, their anteriority in relation to the 1976 convention which protects them, thus holding them completely illegally
", notes Éric Hansen, interregional director Provence-Alpes-Côte- d'Azur and Corsica from the OFB.
The man, who had devoted himself to this passion for many years, possessed in particular, in addition to the birds hunted in the region, many exotic species that he obtained during trips abroad. No less than 21 weapons were also seized from her home, some of which were illegally detained, as well as night vision equipment.