Trafficking in wild animals: One Voice files a complaint for a black panther
In September 2019, a young black panther escaped from a house in Armentières where she was being illegally kept by a man known to the police. After many twists and turns, which could have led to a tragic outcome, she was finally taken in by a sanctuary. On Thursday, January 9, 2025, at 2pm, we will be at the Lille legal tribunal to have the seriousness of the facts, which fall under wildlife trafficking and against which we have filed a complaint, recognized.
On September 18, 2019, residents of Armentières, in the Nord region, were stunned to observe a black panther pacing across the rooftops… Barely six months old, “Louise” had just run away from a private home. Sequestered at a private individual’s place, her claws amputated from her front paws, she was trying to escape the unbearable life to which her “owner”, in search of exoticism and without the slightest authorization, had forced her since she was a baby.
After being captured by the fire department and entrusted to the French Animals Protection League, she was temporarily transferred to the Maubeuge zoo… But other adventures awaited her: just a few days later, she was stolen from the zoo and vanished into thin air. Hearings and searches carried out by the Belgian police led to nothing, leaving us to fear the worst for a long time. Had the kidnappers got rid of the panther to eliminate any chance of tracing her back to them?
It wasn’t until January 2020 that she finally reappeared after being handed over by individuals to a sanctuary in the Netherlands. There, she was renamed Akilla, leaving behind her former first name and the “lap cat” past that went with it.
A deadly illegal trade
The man who had imposed this unnatural existence on her had already been sentenced to three months’ imprisonment for the unauthorized keeping of a monkey, among other offences. So why stop there? Regarding Akilla, the consequences could have been far more serious. She could have – provided she wasn’t shot in the street by her “owner” like Mévy – spent the rest of her life cloistered in a zoo, going in circles behind glass to entertain the gallery. A fate reminiscent of that of the caracal removed from the Athénas center in 2021, or of Maya. Worse still, she could have been killed to enrich the taxidermists and their accomplices.
Such is the face of wildlife trafficking, which still has its place on the international trade podium. Circus performers, skin traders, poachers, traffickers of all kinds and unscrupulous private individuals stick together and are all involved in this dark business. And it’s the animals who pay the highest price. We will continue to defend them relentlessly as long as they remain the playthings of infamous transactions.
To ensure that Akilla’s voice is heard and that she is the last victim of the man who wanted to reduce her to a common apartment cuddly toy, we’ll be at the court hearing in Lille on January 9, 2025, at 2pm.
Photo : Facebook page SDIS 59
The hearing was adjourned to September 4, 2025 at 2:00 pm.