Aussie man 'remorseful' after illegal find in fish tank leads to $2,400 fine
A 'remorseful' Australian man has been hit with a $2,400 fine after state authorities discovered he was keeping an illegal pet in his fish tank. Rather than gold fish, tetras, or even more exotic blue discus, he'd opted for a native crocodile.
And it wasn't the smaller, less dangerous freshwater variety. Hidden away in his suburban home was a juvenile saltwater crocodile, the type that can grow up to six metres long in the wild.
On Tuesday, Queensland's department of environment (DETSI) announced the crocodile had been seized, following a joint operation with police. The man's home in Manoora, west of Cairns, was searched on May 16, following a tip-off by a member of the public.
Pictures show the little predator with its head above the water, in a tank lined with plastic plants, rocks and sticks.
While permits are available in the Northern Territory to keep crocodiles, in Queensland they can't be kept as pets. Numbers of the reptiles still remain worryingly low, and the species is listed as vulnerable to extinction in that state.
Senior conservation officer Daniel Guymer said the crocodile is believed to have been caught in the wild, and was still a juvenile at the time of seizure. Although it's no longer in a tank, sadly it will never experience freedom again.
'The man admitted that he had broken the law by taking the crocodile from the wild and although he was remorseful, we take a zero-tolerance approach to the unlawful possession of wildlife,' Guymer said.
'We have examined the crocodile and although it appears healthy, it cannot be released back into the wild as it may have been exposed to disease. It is destined for a life at a farm or zoo, or at an educational facility.'
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Although the maximum court-ordered penalty for unlawfully keeping a saltwater crocodile is over $36,000 the man, in his 20s, was given a penalty infringement notice by authorities of $2,419 instead.
DETSI is urging anyone with information about crocodiles being illegally kept as pets to contact them on 1300 130 372.
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