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Destin Ngatsongo Motsabéka was sentenced to two years in prison for illegal circulation and marketing of eighty-four gray parrots from Gabon. On March 24, the High Court of the town of Oyo, in the Cuvette department, sentenced the poacher Fabrice Destin Ngatsongo Motsabéka to two years in prison. He is accused of having illegally circulated and marketed eighty-four gray parrots from Gabon. Destin Ngatsongo Motsabéka was arrested on February 9 in Oyo in flagrante delicto. After having undergone various routes, the case of the latter had been presented to the prosecutor of the High Court of Oyo, on the 14th of the same month. During the first hearing, on February 24, this trafficker of wildlife products had admitted the facts of which he was accused. The eighty-four gray parrots from Gabon had been captured in the forests of the surrounding villages of the urban community of Mossaka, before being placed in twenty-five liter cans and transported to the sub-prefecture of Oyo to be sold. Three of these animals were found dead immediately following the seizure and eight more parrots died in the days following the seizure. The poor conditions of detention and transport would be the causes of this loss. The seized Gabon gray parrots were taken to the Tchimpounga reserve in the Kouilou department, where they received appropriate care from the team of veterinarians from the Jane Goodall Institute. It will nevertheless be necessary to wait several months before they can regain their freedom because the traffickers cut the feathers so that the parrots cannot fly. Following the verdict, the prosecutor of the High Court of Oyo, Firmin Ndouniama Okana, said: “… the public prosecutor did not appeal, with regard to the sentence… we agree to this decision which was rendered and this effectively contributes to the fight once morest the trafficking of wildlife products”. It should be noted that in the Republic of Congo, the gray parrot of Gabon and the elephant are among the fully protected animal species, in accordance with Law 37-2008 of November 28, 2008 on wildlife and protected areas. Violators of this provision of the law risk penalties of up to five years in prison and a fine of up to five million CFA francs.

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