Vietnam police rescue more than 400 cats from animal theft crime ring

Animal payment groups accidental the bust highlights the ‘enormous scale’ of the country’s feline nutrient trade.

Police successful Vietnam person seized much than 400 stolen cats successful a large bust of a feline nutrient transgression ringing successful Ho Chi Minh City, according to carnal payment groups and section media.

More than 40 of the rescued cats were reunited with their owners aft the multiday cognition past week, but respective twelve of those rescued person died owed to the harsh conditions they were recovered in, the groups said.

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This cognition is “a sobering reminder of the tremendous scale” of Vietnam’s feline nutrient trade, Karanvir Kukreja, who leads a run against canine and feline nutrient depletion for the planetary nonprofit Humane World for Animals, said successful a connection connected Tuesday.

An probe past week into a spate of favored thefts successful Ho Chi Minh City led constabulary to way down the feline nutrient transgression ringing and detain 9 people, according to section media.

Officers discovered 45 cages containing astir 400 unrecorded cats and 4 ice-filled foam containers holding astir 80 dormant cats with 21 unrecorded cats recovered astatine a abstracted location, according to the Ho Chi Minh City Criminal Police Division.

Cats seized by constabulary astatine a installation successful Ho Chi Minh City connected June 15, 2026 [Handout/Humane World for Animals Viet Nam via AFP]

The suspects admitted to trapping and collecting cats crossed confederate Vietnam implicit the past 3 years successful Ho Chi Minh City, Tay Ninh and An Giang, constabulary said.

Millions of animals autumn unfortunate to canine and feline thieves successful Vietnam who snatch animals disconnected the streets oregon bargain household pets and slaughter them for quality consumption, Kukreja said.

Chris Gindelhumer of the nonprofit Vietnam Cat Welfare, who is helping attraction for the rescued animals, said helium “saw rather a batch of tears successful the past fewer days”.

“It’s truly beauteous to spot however galore Vietnamese families are coming, looking for their cats,” helium said. “But it’s besides heartbreaking due to the fact that galore families were looking for their cats and didn’t find them.”

Many veterinarians and volunteers are moving astir the timepiece for the cats, Gindelhumer said.

Consumption of canine and feline nutrient is ineligible successful Vietnam. Vendors indispensable person permits to validate the animals’ origins. But definite cities similar Hoi An successful cardinal Vietnam are moving with planetary carnal payment groups to halt canine and feline nutrient consumption.

Not agelong aft South Korea’s 2024 prohibition connected canine meat, Vietnamese officials said the authorities plans to betterment parts of the ineligible strategy to amended support pets and the rights of their owners.