Antiques dealer fined for illegal online sale of protected species

At Jedburgh Sheriff Court, Richard Wales from Melrose, pled guilty to a contravention of regulations designed to protect endangered species from illegal trade.

The court heard that police discovered adverts that Wales had placed on the websites Gumtree and eBay.

Police obtained a search warrant for Mr Wales’ home and during the search in September 2015 found a mounted tiger’s head on a wall. Wales said that he had removed the head from a tiger rug and mounted it on a wooden shield.

The tiger’s head was identified by an expert, Dr Kitchener of the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), as the same head that was seen in the Gumtree advert.

Other eBay adverts, from Wales’ ‘theexplorersstudy’ account, offering tiger and leopard claws for sale were also examined. Claws of tigers and leopards cannot be sold without a licence from DEFRA, known as an Article 10 certificate.

Prosecutors were also granted an order forfeiting the tiger’s head which is valued at £3,200.

Laura Buchan, assistant procurator fiscal, specialist casework said: “This illegal trade has a harmful effect on the conservation status of tigers and contributes to their decline in the wild.

“Richard Wales failed in his responsibilities and as a result stands convicted of a criminal offence.

“It’s vitally important that those in the antiques trade fully understand the legislation as well as take seriously their obligations in respect of the trade in items from endangered species.”

Photo courtesy of Crown Office