Bentong: The General Operations Force (GOF) arrested a man and seized 34 Blyth's river frogs (Limnonectes blythii), a protected wildlife species, worth RM17,000 in a raid on a storage facility at Jalan Tras, Bentong, yesterday. GOF Southeast Brigade Commander SAC Ahmad Radzi Hussain reported the raid, conducted under Op Bersepadu Khazanah, was carried out around 5 pm by a team from the 7th Battalion Kem Bukit Galing taskforce, in collaboration with the Pahang Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan).

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the 66-year-old local man, who claimed ownership of the storage facility, was detained for failing to produce a valid licence or permit to possess the species. Preliminary investigations indicated that the frogs were believed to have been obtained from Orang Asli residents in Kampung Gebak and Kampung Gabong, with the intent to sell them to buyers, suspected to be operators of exotic food outlets in Pahang.

The seized animals and the suspect were subsequently taken to the Bentong district police headquarters before being handed over to Perhilitan Pahang for further investigation. Ahmad Radzi emphasized that the GOF would continue to strengthen intelligence gathering and monitoring efforts to prevent the illegal possession, keeping, and trading of protected wildlife without valid licences or permits, aiming to protect the species from further exploitation.

The case is being investigated under Section 60 of the Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 (Act 716).