Wildlife Officers Arrest Suspect Over Illegal Leopard Tooth Pendant and Ivory Items Listed Online

Sri Lankan wildlife authorities have made an arrest following the seizure of a leopard-tooth pendant and a number of ivory items that were allegedly being offered for sale through an online platform, officials confirmed.

Illegal Wildlife Trade Targeted

Officers from the Department of Wildlife Conservation swooped on the suspect after detecting the illegal listings, which featured protected animal parts being advertised to potential buyers online. Among the items recovered was a pendant fashioned from a leopard tooth — a species that holds full legal protection under Sri Lankan law — alongside several ivory pieces believed to have been sourced from elephants.

The trade in parts derived from protected wildlife is a serious criminal offence in Sri Lanka, carrying significant penalties under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance. Authorities have been increasingly vigilant in monitoring digital marketplaces, which have become a growing avenue for the illegal wildlife trade across the region.

Crackdown on Online Wildlife Trafficking

Wildlife enforcement units have ramped up efforts in recent years to identify and prosecute individuals who exploit social media platforms and online classified sites to traffic in protected species and their derivatives. The latest arrest signals that officers are actively tracking such activity in the digital space.

The suspect is currently in custody pending further investigations. Authorities have not ruled out the possibility that the individual may have connections to a wider network involved in the trade of illegal wildlife products.

Sri Lanka's Leopard Under Threat

The Sri Lankan leopard, known scientifically as Panthera pardus kotiya, is an endemic subspecies listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. The illegal killing of leopards for their teeth, claws, and pelts poses a grave threat to the survival of the subspecies, which is found predominantly within the island's national parks and forest reserves.

• Leopards are fully protected under Sri Lankan wildlife law
• Trading in leopard body parts or ivory is a criminal offence
• Offenders can face imprisonment and heavy fines under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance
• Online platforms have increasingly been used to facilitate illegal wildlife transactions

Wildlife conservation groups have long called for stricter enforcement and harsher sentencing to deter would-be traffickers. Members of the public are encouraged to report any suspicious online listings or activities involving protected species to the Department of Wildlife Conservation.

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