Thai police arrest suspected Vietnamese ‘kingpin’ of wildlife trafficking
Boonchai Bach (L) was arrested on Friday evening. (Photo courtesy: EPA) Thai police have arrested a suspected wildlife trafficking kingpin who allegedly fuelled much of Asia’s illegal trade for over a decade.
Police say Boonchai Bach, a 40-year-old Thai of Vietnamese descent, was arrested on Friday evening over the smuggling of 14 rhino horns worth more than $US1 million from Africa to Thailand.
Boonchai, also known as Bach Van Minh and other aliases, allegedly ran a large trafficking network on the Thai-Laos border that spread into Vietnam.
According to the anti-trafficking group Freeland, he and his family played a key role in a syndicate that smuggled poached items including ivory, rhino horn, pangolins, tigers, lions and other rare and endangered species.
Boonchai has reportedly denied the allegations against him.
Under the wildlife law, he could face up to four years in prison and a 40,000-baht fine, but authorities say they are also considering money-laundering and customs violation charges that carry up to 10 years in prison.
