Two traffickers who were trying to take six sedated primates, some of them endangered species, out of Colombia have been arrested by the police on Friday at an airport near the city of Medellín, reports Afp.
The detainees were concealing the mammals when agents arrested them at the José María Córdova de Rionegro airport terminal, near the second largest city in Colombia, the institution stated in a video sent to the press.
Two of the animals, which the traffickers were attempting to transport to the Dominican Republic, died due to the conditions of their transport, and the other four were admitted to a veterinary hospital in critical condition.
"We cannot allow this trafficking to continue growing in our country and on our planet," denounced Javier Valencia, director of the public organization Cornare, which oversees biodiversity in the Antioquia region and received the rescued primates under its care.
The victims are two white-faced capuchin monkeys ("Cebus capucinus") and four cotton-top tamarins ("Saguinus oedipus"), the latter critically endangered.
The surviving specimens will undergo "a process of recovery and rehabilitation," according to Cornare. If they manage to recover, they will be returned to the wild.
"They entered with signs of malnutrition and mistreatment," added Camilo Muñoz, the veterinarian in charge of their care.
In 2022, the Colombian Ministry of Environment estimated that two animals victimized by illegal trafficking are released in Colombia every day.
The arrested individuals will be prosecuted for crimes related to the exploitation of natural resources and trafficking of wildlife.
Colombia, one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, punishes animal trafficking with up to 12 years in prison and hefty fines.