Six arrested in connection with swan poisoning
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2004-04-09 21:45

Police have arrested six people suspected of poisoning 17 white swans, eight of which died in north China, police officers said.

Another three suspects involved in the case remained at large, according to the forestry police of Chifeng City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

The forestry police was tipped off on March 26 by Liu Shi'an, amember of the local animal protection council, of the death of three swans. Liu found four white swans, seemingly injured, near the Hongshan Reservoir and took them to the reservoir management bureau for rescue.

Only one was saved while three others died. The dissection showed that the birds were poisoned.

Police put the site under tight surveillance, and tracked threelocal villagers who appeared suspicious. A home search disclosed swan meat cooked in a pot, and swan feathers and wings.

The three villagers turned over seven other people in connection, either poisoners or eaters. The police caught four butthree escaped.

According to the police, the killers were all local villagers. They mixed food and pesticide and cast toxic bait at the site. Poisoned swans were eaten or sold for money.

The police cleaned the site to get rid of remaining poisonous bait, five kilograms in total, to prevent further injures or deaths of swans, which are under state second-class protection.

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