{"id":282906,"date":"2025-04-15T22:20:08","date_gmt":"2025-04-15T22:20:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/15\/19-big-cats-rescued-in-spain-as-police-raid-animal-smuggling-ring\/"},"modified":"2025-04-15T22:20:08","modified_gmt":"2025-04-15T22:20:08","slug":"19-big-cats-rescued-in-spain-as-police-raid-animal-smuggling-ring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/15\/19-big-cats-rescued-in-spain-as-police-raid-animal-smuggling-ring\/","title":{"rendered":"19 Big Cats Rescued in Spain as Police Raid Animal Smuggling Ring"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Spanish police say they rescued 19 exotic felines from a home on the island of Majorca that were bound for sale on the growing illegal world market for big cats, and they arrested the Russian couple who owned them.<\/p>\n

With demand for large felines like lions and tigers high in some quarters \u2014 some consider them a status symbol \u2014 there is a brisk business for criminal rings that traffic in them, even if the animals are protected or endangered species.<\/p>\n

In a statement Monday announcing the arrests, the Spanish authorities said the two suspects were tied to a smuggling ring that works on multiple continents. \u201cThe detainees sold various animal species internationally through internet portals, including white tigers, black leopards, hyenas, and pumas,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n

When the police raided their home, they said, they found a caracal \u2014 a cat notable for its elongated ears \u2014 and two servals, as well as 16 hybrids. International travel documents from Russia, Belarus and China for more than 40 others animals were also discovered, the police said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n