A new episode of violence against wildlife shakes Alto Adige: in the Fanes-Sennes-Braies Natural Park a brutally mutilated wolf was found, deprived of its head, paws and tail, probably to make a trophy. An act of cruelty which, according to associations and law enforcement agencies, represents a real “signature” of poachers, who are increasingly bold after the recent downgrading of the wolf from a particularly protected species to simply protected.
According to Enpa, this horror is the concrete demonstration of how the relaxation of protections has been interpreted by the most dangerous fringes as an implicit green light. A “free all” which has no basis in law, but which fuels criminal acts against a species already under pressure. The association denounces how the current penalties provided for by article 727 bis are “ridiculous” and urges the introduction of a real criminal offence, with imprisonment and severe fines for those who kill protected animals.
Investigations, searches and an illegal arsenal
The horrible discovery triggered intense controls. Following a search, a man from Val Badia was reported: sophisticated weapons, thermal optics, silencers and ready-to-use cartridges were found in his car. Furthermore, three killed specimens of Alpine chough were found in his stable, as well as skins of ungulates with wounds compatible with firearms, attributable to poaching activities.
A territory transformed into a “far west”
LAV denounces a climate that is now out of control, a territory where do-it-yourself vigilantes proliferate and where the provincial administration, crushed by the demands of farmers, has contributed to creating the context that today makes similar atrocities possible. The associations also point out that in the province it has even been established that the management of wolves should be based almost exclusively on killing, rather than on prevention systems.
Faced with an increasingly worrying scenario, animal rights organizations are asking for a clear position and concrete measures: strengthening of controls, continuous coordination between the Carabinieri and the Forestry Corps, and above all an intervention by the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Justice. Without a tightening of penalties and a political change of direction, they warn, other animals risk becoming victims of the violence of a criminal minority.
You might also be interested in:
