The National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department will initiate legal action against two Thais, a Sri Lankan and a Ukrainian for being in possession of and moving a lion without a permit.
The department’s decision to charge them comes after a viral video clip showed a young lion recently enjoying a ride in a convertible in Pattaya, Chon Buri province.
Veera Khunchairak, the department’s deputy director-general, said that the investigation into the matter has revealed that Swangjit Kosoongnern purchased the animal from a farm in Ratchaburi province on December 6th and obtained a permit to keep a lion.
Swangjit applied for a permit to move it to Pattaya, but did so before the permit was granted.
The lion was kept in a cage at a house rented by a Sri Lankan man and a Ukrainian woman. It was the Sri Lankan who took the cat out for a ride.
Swangjit explained that she had…
