Two Lao men were arrested on 26 August for attempting to smuggle protected wildlife to the Lao-Vietnam border.
According to Savannakhet Public Security News, the case emerged after residents reported on 25 August that a wildlife smuggling operation was planned from Khammouan Province to the Lao–Vietnam border, where the animals were to be sold to a Vietnamese buyer.
In response, provincial authorities began monitoring Kaeng Village in Seponh District the following day. At around 4 pm, they spotted a suspicious vehicle parked by the roadside. Upon inspection, officials discovered several types of protected wildlife in the car’s trunk.
Police seized 24 raccoons, a pangolin, and a rodent, all of the properties were detained for further investigation.
The suspects, two men from Khammouane Province aged 48 and 49, had reportedly purchased the animals from villagers in Nong Phee village, Thakaek district. They intended to smuggle the wildlife to a Vietnamese buyer at the Lao Bao border crossing.
But the Lao–Vietnam border is not the only hotspot for wildlife trafficking.
On 25 June, Thai authorities arrested two Lao nationals in Chiang Rai Province for attempting to smuggle 101 kilograms of wildlife carcasses near the Lao–Thai border. The haul included porcupines, a binturong, a muntjac, and a monitor lizard.
Similar wildlife crimes have been reported across multiple provinces in Laos. Under Lao law, illegal hunting or trading of protected wildlife carries fines ranging from LAK 3 to 10 million (approximately USD 138 to 461), and prison sentences of three months to five years.