IPOH: Details of the tiger found dead on the Gerik–Jeli East West Highway could not be established as most of its body parts were missing, says Perak Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) director Yusoff Shariff.
What was left at the scene were the tiger’s head and pieces of flesh.
A video recording of the bodily parts of a tiger on the road went viral on social media recently.
Yusoff said the department was notified of the matter at 9am yesterday.
He said that his colleagues in Gerik visited the site near Banjaran Titiwangsa rest and recreational area and confirmed the accuracy of the content.
“From our investigation, the tiger was hit by a lorry from Gerik around 5.30am.
“We managed to contact the driver, who said he saw the tiger crossing but did not have the time to hit the brakes,” he said when contacted yesterday.
Yusoff urged those who had taken the body parts of the tiger, be it its skin, fangs, bones, nails or whiskers, to hand them over to the department immediately.
He warned that under the Wildlife Conservation Act, anyone found in possession of any part of a Malayan tiger without permission could be fined a minimum of RM150,000 and jailed up to 15 years if convicted.
He said that while they were unable to identify the tiger’s gender, it was believed to be an adult.
“Since many parts of this tiger are missing, we are in cooperation with the police and will gather as much information as possible to track down those responsible for taking the parts.
“We have collected all the remaining parts on the road and lodged a police report.
“We are unable to determine the gender of the carcass due to its severe destruction. We can’t even estimate its weight, but we believe it is an adult tiger,” he added.
Yusoff advised road users to be extra careful when driving on roads that cross wildlife habitats.
“Road users must think about the wildlife that needs to be protected,” he added.
