SINGAPORE - What started off as a joke for one man resulted in an $8,000 fine after he bought and later sold a pangolin through a Telegram chat group.
Lee Kian Han, 35, pleaded guilty on March 13 to one charge of selling a Sunda pangolin illegally to a National Parks Board (NParks) officer who posed as a buyer.
Two other charges were taken into consideration during his sentencing.
Sunda pangolins are a critically endangered and protected wildlife species in Singapore. It is illegal to remove them from the wild.
Lee, who was unrepresented, told the court that it all started off as a joke between him and his friend after seeing an advertisement for the sale of the pangolin on messaging app Telegram.
He had messaged the seller and asked questions such as “Can I buy a leash for this animal?” and “How big and what colour is it?”
In his mitigation, Lee said he did not believe that the seller, a Republic of Singapore Air Force regular, had the animal in his possession.
Catch up on the news that everyone’s talking about
Thank you!
Sign up
By signing up, I accept SPH Media's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy as amended from time to time.
Yes, I would also like to receive SPH Media Group's SPH Media Limited, its related corporations and affiliates as well as their agents and authorised service providers.
marketing and promotions.
On March 1, 2024, Damien Tan Guan Rong, 21, who holds the rank of Military Expert 1 and is employed as a technician, was sentenced to a year’s probation.
He had pleaded guilty in January to one charge of selling a protected wildlife species without approval.
Tan had earlier admitted in court that he had removed the wild pangolin from a park connector along Yio Chu Kang Road on July 2, 2023.
Lee told the court that he was out drinking with friends on July 3 when Tan messaged him again to ask if he was interested in purchasing the pangolin.
Lee said: “At around 1am, I told him I don’t believe him. I told him if you really want to prove you have it, you drive down to my house, and I will buy it.”
At the time, Lee was staying at his then girlfriend’s house at Jurong West. Tan and Lee agreed on a price of $1,400.
While he was in bed, Lee said Tan took a picture to show that he was at the void deck of the block.
Said Lee: “Out of curiosity, I went down because I wanted to see if he was a funny guy. I wanted to call his bluff.”
Tracking Singapore’s online black market for pets
Man admits to selling a protected juvenile Sunda pangolin to NParks officer on sting operation
Tan then showed Lee the pangolin, which was in a bag. The court heard this took place sometime around 2am on July 4, 2023.
Lee then transferred the money to Tan and took the pangolin home.
While he was at work later that day, Lee said he realised the joke went too far and decided to sell the pangolin.
When asked by District Judge Lorraine Ho why he did not report this to relevant wildlife authorities, Lee said he was afraid they would ask him how and from where he got the animal.
He also admitted he wanted to recover the $1,400 he had spent on it.
Lee sold it on the same day for $1,600 to an NParks officer who was posing as a buyer. Lee was arrested while handing over the animal to the “buyer”.
NParks sent it for examination and observation, and found that it was pregnant and “very hungry”.
For selling a protected wildlife species, Lee could have been fined up to $50,000 or jailed for a maximum of two years, or both.
World Pangolin Day: Animated video for kids spotlights world’s most-trafficked mammal
How this pangolin sperm bank in S’pore is giving the world’s most trafficked mammal a lifeline
Unlock unlimited access to ST exclusive content, insights and analyses
ST One Digital - Annual
$9.90 $4.95 /month
Get offer
$59.40 for the first year and $118.80 per year thereafter.
ST One Digital - Monthly
29.90 $9.90 /month
Subscribe today
No lock-in contract
Unlock more knowledge, unlock more benefits
New feature: Stay up to date on important topics and follow your favourite writers with myST All subscriber-only content on ST app and straitstimes.com Easy access any time via ST app on one mobile device
Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Endangered/threatened species Wildlife conservation Singapore crime
Facebook Telegram More Whatsapp Linkedin Twitter FB Messenger Email Print Purchase Article Copy permalink https://str.sg/LE3r
Read this subscriber-only article for free!
Just sign up for a free account and log in to continue reading.
Man fined $8,000 after selling pregnant pangolin to NParks officer posing as buyer
Sign up
Already have an account? Log in.
All done! This article is now fully available for you
Man fined $8,000 after selling pregnant pangolin to NParks officer posing as buyer
Read now
Please verify your e-mail to read this subscriber-only article in full
Man fined $8,000 after selling pregnant pangolin to NParks officer posing as buyer
Resend verification e-mail
The gift link for this subscriber-only article has expired.
Get unlimited access to all stories at $0.99/month for the first 3 months.
Subscribe now
You have reached your limit of subscriber-only articles this month.
Get unlimited access to all stories at $0.99/month for the first 3 months.
Subscribe now
Read and win!
Read 3 articles and stand to win rewards
Let's go! Terms & conditions apply
Frequently asked questions
Good job, you've read 3 articles today!
Spin the wheel now
Let's go! Terms & conditions apply
Frequently asked questions