Kazakhstan national hunting team member arrested

Tengrinews.kz — An investigation into a criminal case against a local resident suspected of illegally acquiring and keeping birds of prey listed in Kazakhstan’s Red Book has been completed in Karaganda. This was reported by the Financial Monitoring Agency.
What happened
According to the investigation, since 2017 the suspect had organized an illegal nursery on the territory of his home in Karaganda. It is specified that the man was a member of the Qusbegilik federation and was part of Kazakhstan’s national team for traditional hunting with birds of prey.
Investigators believe that through a themed Instagram page dedicated to traditional hunting and the keeping and treatment of hunting birds, he established contacts with people who delivered rare predators taken from their natural habitat to him.

What was found during the search
During the search, law enforcement officers seized 35 birds of prey, including saker falcons, golden eagles and peregrine falcons. All of these species are listed in Kazakhstan’s Red Book and are classified as rare and endangered animals.
The suspect was taken into custody. By court decision, his Toyota 4Runner was also seized.
What will happen to the birds
The criminal case has already been sent to court.
The seized birds were temporarily transferred to the Karaganda Zoo. After the court verdict enters into legal force, they are planned to be released into their natural habitat.