Page 11 - IAV Digital Magazine #450

iAV - Antelope Valley Digital Magazine
Couple Earned Money On YouTube By Skinning Endangered Animals Then Eating Them
By Richard Hartley- Parkinson
A woman has been arrested after she filmed herself skinning, cooking and eat- ing endangered animals so that she could earn money on YouTube.
Dressed in hot pants and crop tops, Ah Lin Tuch sparked outrage at her choice of food as she pre- sented a ‘sur- vivalist’ life.
She ate: An endangered fish- ing cat A large lizard Several protected species of birds A king cobra Shark Stingrays Frogs
However viewers reported her when they real- ized that many of
the animals she was eating near her home in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, were actually protect- ed species.
She and her hus- band Phoun Raty were tracked down by the country’s Ministry of Environment and have publicly apologized for ‘destroying our wildlife’.
Chea Sam Arng, head of the Environment Ministry’s General Directorate for Administration of Nature Conservation and Protection, said: ‘We are now in the process of taking legal action against them while the working group is prepar- ing a report on the matter.
‘The animals that were cooked were mostly not on the endan- gered list, but are protected. Only one species was in danger of extinction.’
The endangered animal is the fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus), while the lizard, a large heron and other
species of birds are protected.
The couple have removed the clips of Ah Lin eating those ani- mals – but still have footage of her eating frogs, the cobra, shark and a stingray.
The couple claimed that they bought the wildlife ‘from a local market’
then cooked it.
Environment offi- cials are now investigating whether the ani- mals were killed in the wild or bought from ille- gal stalls while they prepare the prosecution.
Ah Lin said: ‘I don’t even know what kind of ani- mals or birds we used or their
impact on wildlife conservation.
‘I bought the wildlife at Preak Phnov and we started filming our videos since December. Now I have already admitted my mis- take.’
Ah Lin’s hus- band, Phoun, said they had intended to earn a living from the social media channel which had so far earned them $500 for Google sponsored adverts being shown on the clips.
Chea Sam Arng said the Government was now investigating the couple and the sources of the wildlife they were seen cook- ing.
iAV - Antelope Valley Digital Magazine