Officials hunt lion cub misuse at tourist cafe
Police and wildlife officials are tracking down the whereabouts of a lion cub that was put on display at a cafe north of Phuket Town so tourists could take photos of it.
Chinthep Kanghae, head of the Khao Phra Thaew NonHunting Area in Thalang, which is responsible for wildlife animals in Phuket, led an inspection of The Glass House Cafe and Space on RatsadaAnusorn Rd in Ratsada on Monday (Feb 12).
Joining the inspection were Phuket City Police Deputy Chief Pol Lt Boonphob Thinbut and other officers from the Phuket City Police, along with officers from the Phuket Tourist Police and Phuket Forestry Office.
At the cafe the officers were greeted by a Chinese national who presented himself only as “Mr Khai”, who said he was a friend of the owner of the cafe.
Mr Khai was invited to Phuket Police City Police
Station to answer questions about the lion cub, which had sparked am uproar online by people concerned about the animal’s welfare.
Mr Khai told police that the lion cub had been brought to Phuket from Bangkok. The cub was kept at a house in Chalong for about 15 days before the owner brought it to the cafe.
The cub was put on display for visitors to see for two to three hours a day, and was taken home to Chalong every night by its owner ‒ who so far has remained unnamed.
Officials noted that Mr
Khai spoke very little Thai. However, officers confirmed that Mr Khai told them that the owner of the lion cub was in Krabi and was to return to Phuket on Monday night.
The investigating officers met with Phuket City Police Chief Pol Col Prathueng Phonmana to discuss the further investigation, and said they were to coordinate with the Chalong Police Chief before deciding on requesting a search warrant for the house where the lion was said to be kept.
Mr Chinthep, head of the Khao Phra Thaew Non
Hunting Area in Thalang, said officers were also investigating whether the lion cub was brought to Phuket legally.
“We are currently conducting a preliminary investigation. So far the lion has not yet been found, so it is not yet known whether the lion came legally or not,” Mr Chinthep said.
“Lions are controlled under the Wild Animal Conservation and Protection Act of 2019 and require permission to possess and must be raised at the registered place of possession,” he added.
Mr Chinthep confirmed that his officers had not seen documents that validated legal ownership of the cub, or confirming that it had been transported to Phuket with the correct permission
“We’ve inspected the cafe, but we haven’t found any lion cubs. So we have contacted the cafe owner to bring the lion cub and documents to show to officials, and we are coordinating with the local police in order to issue a summons to ask for more information,” Mr Chinthep said.