An 86 years old Ghanaian national identified as Kofi Budi has been found guilty for hunting down 26 parrots in the Liberian Forest.
The act which is in total violation of the National Wildlife Conservation and Protected Area Management Law of Liberia has landed the defendant behind bars at the national correction palace in Zwedru.
The guilty verdict was handed down on the defendant Budi on June 13, 2023 by the Associate Magistrate at the Zwedru City Magisterial Court, Augustine T. Noring.
Prior to the verdict, the defendant admitted to both counts of possession of live animals without permit or license.
According to the convict, he narrated that he bought three parrots from Ghana and has been living in Grand Gedeh County for the past 20 years with his pets.
“I brought three parrots with me from Ghana and I hunted and caught additional 23 parrots more to make them 26 and I have been living with them for over 20 years now,” he told the Zwedru Magisterial Court during the trial.
The convict told the investigation that he climb trees to set his traps using glue substance on stick, four nails hammered to the tree to hold the trap in place and ashes to remove glue from on the parrot when caught.
The investigation established that all materials mentioned above belong to defendant Koffi Budi, which he has been using regularly.
The investigation also established that out of the 26 parrots, three grand parrots have been trained by defendant Budi to behave up rightly.
It can be recalled that on June 5, 2023, the Ministry of Justice through the office of the city solicitor of the Zwedru City Magisterial Court requested the court for a writ of arrest to be served on the defendant for the crimes he allegedly committed.
