Tiger Cub’s Death Leap Exposes Black Market Breeding Ring

(Photo: ChinaFotoPress/ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images)

Three local officials are fined $450 each for illegally raising endangered Siberian tigers.


http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/03/19/china-tiger-busted-high-rise-death-traffic?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-2015-03-19

March 19, 2015 By Taylor Hill

Taylor Hill is TakePart's associate environment and wildlife editor.

It started with the unbelievable story of a tiger cub plummeting 11 stories to its death from a building in a Chinese port city.

It ends with three government officials, all members of the People’s Congress (the city legislature) of Qingdao, resigning from their posts for illegally breeding and raising endangered Siberian tigers. Each man has also been fined 3,000 yuan—about $450—but the three face no further charges, according to the South China Morning Post.

Over time the men possessed at least 11 endangered Siberian tigers between them. But they might never have been discovered if not for the harrowing death of the seven-month-old cub in February.

Possibly spooked by the Lunar New Year fireworks, state media reported, the tiger cub escaped from its cage on the roof of the 11-story apartment building and fell to its death. The cub was found in the parking lot below the building the next morning.

FULL story at link.