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French Tourists Detained for Illegal Hunting in Argentina
🇦🇷 Argentina /Crime & Justice

French Tourists Detained for Illegal Hunting in Argentina

From La Nación · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Official statement Outcome reported
  • French tourists and their guides were detained in northern Santa Fe, Argentina, for allegedly participating in illegal hunting expeditions.
  • Authorities seized hunting equipment, firearms, and 24 wild ducks from the group, who lacked necessary licenses and permits.
  • This incident follows a similar case in May where tourists were accused of killing approximately 300 native animals without proper authorization.

French tourists and their guides were detained in Fortín Olmos, located in the northern Santa Fe province of Argentina, for allegedly engaging in illegal hunting expeditions of regional fauna. The operation, conducted by rural police and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, resulted in the seizure of three shotguns of various calibers, ammunition, calls, decoys, and 24 deceased wild ducks.

Rural patrols stopped two suspicious pickup trucks on rural roads. Upon inspection, one individual identified himself verbally as a "professional hunting guide" and was transporting two French citizens. The second vehicle carried the logistical manager of the group, accompanied by an Argentine national and a third French citizen. When asked for documentation authorizing hunting activity in Santa Fe, officers found that none of the individuals possessed the required hunting license or permits for the fields, as mandated by current regulations.

Furthermore, only one of the detained individuals held a valid user credential for firearms, and it was expired. The vehicles contained various implements exclusively used for waterfowl hunting, indicating the group was operating covertly in the region's wetlands under the cover of night. A police spokesperson confirmed that none of the contingent members had the necessary permits to conduct such activities.

The detained individuals are now under the jurisdiction of the Justice system, with the involvement of the No. 4 Fiscal Unit in Vera. The charges include improper firearm possession and violations of the National Law on Wildlife Conservation. This incident is not isolated; a similar case occurred in May in Intiyaco, also in the Vera department, where tourists without hunting or firearm permits were detained for allegedly killing around 300 native animals. An official from Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Argentina noted that such detected incidents likely represent only a fraction of unreported illegal hunting activities.

none of the involved in the contingent possessed the enabling hunting license nor the authorizations required by current regulations to carry out the activity.

— Police spokespersonA police spokesperson confirmed the lack of proper authorization for the hunting activities conducted by the group.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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