By Quyen Vu | Project Leader
On behalf of everyone at ENV, we sincerely thank you all for standing with us in the fight against wildlife crime in Vietnam. Your support directly helps our team respond to wildlife crime reports, assist law enforcement authorities, rescue trafficked animals, and protect endangered species. We are deeply grateful for your continued support and are pleased to share some of the results achieved from January to April 2026.
A total of 1,249 new wildlife cases were reported to ENV during the first four months of 2026, a 68% increase compared with the same period of the previous year. A majority of reported cases involved advertising and selling wildlife on popular social media platforms. Our team’s efforts resulted in the confiscation of almost 500 kg of ivory and pangolin scales, as well as the successful rescue of 531 animals from the illegal trade, including one bear, and a large number of endangered freshwater turtles and tortoises.
Tigers
On March 4, 2026, Ninh Binh Provincial Police, in cooperation with ENV, arrested two men and confiscated a frozen tiger’s skeleton at a residential house during a sting operation. The subjects are biological brothers, one of whom owns the house where the tiger was kept, and the other owned the tiger and was a wildlife trafficker who frequently cooked tiger bone glue. Both were prosecuted (Case ref. 34503/ENV).
Bears
On February 2, 2026, Da Nang PC responded to a correspondence by ENV and successfully convinced Da Son spiritual culture area to transfer the last moon bear (Ursus thibetanus) to a rescue center at Bach Ma National Park (Case ref. 16052/ENV)
Turtles and tortoises
On January 8, 2026, Thanh Xuan Ward Police of Hanoi, in cooperation with ENV, confiscated two live sulcata tortoises (Centrochelys sulcata) from a shipper during a sting operation. On January 10, 2026, FPD Area 2 issued an administrative fine of VND 6 million for transporting and selling turtles (Case ref. 12384).
On March 6, 2026, Phu My FPD, in cooperation with the Economic Department of Tam Thang Ward PC in Ho Chi Minh City, responded to a public report via the ENV Wildlife Crime Hotline and confiscated 10 Chinese stripe-necked turtles (Mauremys sinensis) from a local temple. The turtles were released back into nature (Case ref. 19620/ENV).
Pangolins
On March 24, 2026, Hanoi Police, in cooperation with ENV, conducted a sting operation that resulted in the seizure of five hornbill rostrums and the arrest of the supplier and his wife. Simultaneous raids at a warehouse in Hanoi led to the seizure of 4.5 tonnes of illegal cigarettes and one additional arrest. As part of the same operation, additional raids at another warehouse in Quang Ninh resulted in the seizure of 242.92 kg of ivory and 240 kg of pangolin scales. Later, the fourth subject, responsible for handling input contacts for shipments of smuggled cigarettes, was arrested (Case ref. 8695/ENV).
On February 5, 2026, Quang Ninh Economic Police arrested a woman during a sting operation and seized 10 kg of scales from Sunda pangolins (Manis javanica) and Chinese pangolins (Manis pentadactyla) while she was waiting for a customer on her motorbike. The supplier was subsequently arrested (Case ref. 36374/ENV).
Deactivation of social media accounts for wildlife violations
On January 19, 2026, Facebook deactivated a wildlife trading group called "Three-region wildlife hunting and trapping group," following a report submitted by ENV through the Ministry of Communication. The group had 19,097 members and was first reported to ENV by a member of the public in 2025 for advertising mouse-deer, civets, and some other wildlife (Case ref. 33957/ENV).
On January 20, 2026, Facebook deactivated a wildlife trading group named "Mouse-deer, wild boar, and civet breeder group." The group had 30,344 members and was initially reported to ENV by a member of the public in 2024 for advertising the sale of civets, mouse-deer, bamboo rats, and other wildlife (Case ref. 29518/ENV).
On March 23, 2026, Facebook deactivated a wildlife trading group called "Three-region night-bird group – Wildlife," following a report submitted by ENV through the Ministry of Communication. The group had 54,124 members and was first reported to ENV by a member of the public in 2024 for advertising the sale of civets, shorebirds, and other wildlife (Case ref. 30416/ENV).
On March 23, 2026, Facebook deactivated a wildlife trading group called "Bengal cats - F1 cats - Leopard cats", following a report submitted by ENV through the Ministry of Communication. The group had 11,616 members and was first reported to ENV by a member of the public in 2024 for advertising leopard cats (Case ref. 32584/ENV).
On March 23, 2026, Facebook deactivated a wildlife trading group called "Vietnam turtle group" after a report submitted by ENV through the Ministry of Communication. The group had 69,304 members and was first reported to ENV by a member of the public in September 2025 for advertising reptile species such as turtles and geckos (Case ref. 34544/ENV).
Communication and Public Awareness
In March, with help from ENV’s volunteers, 278 pagodas in Ho Chi Minh City were inspected, 16 of which were found to have turtles in their ponds.
In April, ENV launched an intensive campaign to curb the illegal trade in freshwater turtles and tortoises. As part of this initiative, ENV conducted a cybercrime enforcement campaign, uncovering 212 turtle crime cases totaling 14,786 links to violations and involving an estimated 50,000 live turtles advertised for sale online.
To help the public understand the serious threats turtles face, in April, ENV released its 62nd TV Public Service Announcement, titled “Buying turtles finances crime,” which highlights how purchasing turtles, even with good intentions, enriches criminals and directly threatens turtle survival in the wild.
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By Quyen Vu | Project Leader
By Quyen Vu | Project Leader
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