Wildlife Justice Commission

Wildlife Justice Commission The Wildlife Justice Commission works to disrupt and dismantle transnational organised wildlife crime

The Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC) is a results oriented organisation operating globally to help disrupt and dismantle transnational organised wildlife criminal networks. Our scope encompasses illegal trade in wildlife species, timber and fisheries. We conduct undercover, intelligence-led investigations based on law enforcement methodology, share intelligence, present compelling evidence, engag

e in diplomatic efforts and if necessary, hold a Public Hearing with the goal of activating justice. Founded in 2015, the organisation is a charitable foundation under Dutch law.

! 🐒Many primate species, including great apes, monkeys and lemurs, are listed on CITES Appendix I, meaning they are amo...
09/01/2026

! 🐒

Many primate species, including great apes, monkeys and lemurs, are listed on CITES Appendix I, meaning they are among the world’s most threatened species and are afforded the highest level of protection from international commercial trade.

Despite this protection, primates continue to be trafficked for the illegal pet trade.

We need to disrupt the criminal networks driving this trade and the demand that fuels it. Together, we can help stop primate trafficking and ensure these animals remain in the wild, where they belong. 🤝bit.ly/donateWJC

This week's Wildlife Win of the Week comes from Lao PDR, where authorities have arrested 11 suspects connected to a sign...
08/26/2026

This week's Wildlife Win of the Week comes from Lao PDR, where authorities have arrested 11 suspects connected to a significant wildlife trafficking network.

On 16 August 2026, the Environmental Police Department (EPD) of Lao PDR, supported by the Ministry of Public Security, arrested 11 suspects in Bolikhamxay Province. The operation resulted in the seizure of an estimated 1.8 tonnes of ivory; the largest ivory seizure ever recorded in the country.

The suspects are alleged to have trafficked ivory, rhino horn, and pangolin scales along the Africa–Asia corridor. The seized ivory carries an estimated market value of USD 510,000 and represents the tusks of roughly 60 slaughtered elephants.

Congratulations to the Environmental Police Department of Lao PDR and the Ministry of Public Security on this decisive strike against organised wildlife crime. At Wildlife Justice, we're proud to stand alongside law enforcement agencies working to dismantle these criminal networks, hold traffickers accountable, and give threatened species a fighting chance at survival.

Two alleged wildlife traffickers have been arrested in the United States following an 18-month investigation into a year...
08/21/2026

Two alleged wildlife traffickers have been arrested in the United States following an 18-month investigation into a years-long scheme to smuggle protected reptiles across the U.S.-Mexico border.

The arrests followed the discovery of dozens of live reptiles concealed in a vehicle, including 60 abronia lizards, four venomous palm pit vipers, three caimans, a baby crocodile and an indigo snake.

The investigation also uncovered the alleged trafficking of protected box turtles, with traffickers selling animals for thousands of dollars and moving wildlife in both directions across the border.

The case highlights how demand for exotic animals in the illegal pet trade can drive the trafficking of protected species across borders, putting wild populations at risk and subjecting animals to dangerous conditions.

👏 Congratulations to all those involved on this important action against wildlife trafficking.

In 2025, four baby orangutans were rescued from the illegal pet trade in Thailand through two separate Wildlife Justice-...
08/19/2026

In 2025, four baby orangutans were rescued from the illegal pet trade in Thailand through two separate Wildlife Justice-supported operations. Earlier this year, we were grateful to receive the news that all four had been repatriated to Indonesia.

In our line of work, where much of what we help seize consists of trafficked wildlife products, it is especially encouraging to see how intelligence-led investigations can create opportunities not only for disruption and prosecutions, but, in some cases, rescue and return to the wild.

These are the stories we always hope to tell more of. But these four orangutans were the lucky ones.

The illegal pet trade comes at a devastating cost. Orangutan mothers are fiercely protective of their young, and when baby orangutans are taken from the wild because they are considered easy to tame and the "ideal pet", their mothers are often killed in the process. Many baby orangutans do not survive the journey through the trafficking supply chain.

We need to put an end to a multi-billion dollar industry that exploits wildlife for profit.

The goal should not simply be to have more rescue and return stories to tell. It should be to reach a point where we no longer have to tell them, because orangutans are still where they belong: in the wild.

This , help us make that future possible: bit.ly/donateWJC

🙌 This week's Wildlife Win of the Week comes from Vietnam, which is no longer a safe haven for wildlife traffickers. On ...
08/14/2026

🙌 This week's Wildlife Win of the Week comes from Vietnam, which is no longer a safe haven for wildlife traffickers.

On 6 August 2026, Vietnamese authorities seized 1,193 kg of elephant ivory and 79.3 kg of bones concealed in a shipment imported from the Republic of Congo to Quy Nhon Port. Credit to the Gia Lai Provincial Police, the Vietnam Economic Police, and the Vietnam Environmental Crime Prevention Police for their actions to combat organised crime.

This significant seizure is a reminder that working together to detect, investigate, and prosecute wildlife crime can lead to meaningful action for threatened species. At Wildlife Justice, we support these efforts by working alongside law enforcement agencies across borders to disrupt criminal networks, identify those responsible, and help bring wildlife criminals to justice.

It’s kinda chic to know who’s really behind wildlife crime 🕵️‍♀️🐘 Behind the illegal wildlife trade are organised crimin...
08/13/2026

It’s kinda chic to know who’s really behind wildlife crime 🕵️‍♀️🐘

Behind the illegal wildlife trade are organised criminal networks operating across borders, coordinating trafficking routes and generating profits from wildlife crime.

That’s where we come in: Disrupting criminal networks, saving species from extinction.

Support us today. Like. Share. Donate.

08/12/2026

Elephants are among the world's most extraordinary animals, with complex social lives and an essential role in the ecosystems they help sustain. Protecting them requires addressing the criminal networks that profit from their exploitation.

The illegal ivory trade is driven by transnational organised criminal networks operating across continents. These networks recruit suppliers, coordinate transport, exploit global trade routes, move illicit profits across borders and continually adapt their methods to evade detection.

The Wildlife Justice Commission investigates the networks behind the trade, developing intelligence that helps identify the individuals coordinating and financing these crimes and supports law enforcement partners in taking action. The goal is not simply to seize trafficked ivory, but to increase the cost and risk of trafficking by disrupting the criminal enterprises behind it.

Sustained, intelligence-led action is placing increasing pressure on transnational ivory trafficking networks. As highlighted in our Disruption and Disarray report, cross-continental ivory trafficking has declined, demonstrating that sustained pressure can disrupt the criminal networks behind the trade.

Thanks to partners like the Elephant Crisis Fund, a joint initiative of Save the Elephants and the Wildlife Conservation Network, the Wildlife Justice Commission can continue strengthening efforts to protect elephants and disrupt the networks driving their exploitation.

What does a lion have to do with the illegal tiger trade? More than many people realise. Wildlife Justice Commission int...
08/10/2026

What does a lion have to do with the illegal tiger trade?

More than many people realise.

Wildlife Justice Commission intelligence and investigative findings show that lion bones are trafficked as substitutes for tiger bones in illegal supply chains. Our investigations indicate that bone paste products are among the most lucrative and sought-after products derived from both tigers and lions in the illegal wildlife trade.

In illegal markets, these products are sold with claims that they can relieve conditions such as arthritis and rheumatism or enhance vitality, despite there being no scientific evidence that they provide these benefits.

Behind the trade in lion and tiger parts are transnational organised criminal networks that exploit demand, move wildlife products across borders, and profit from the illegal exploitation of big cats.

This , we’re shining a light on the wildlife trafficking networks threatening some of the world’s most iconic big cats.

Huge win for pangolins, and wildlife at large 🙌 Fugitive and wildlife trafficking kingpin Cai Jinlian was arrested in Ab...
08/05/2026

Huge win for pangolins, and wildlife at large 🙌

Fugitive and wildlife trafficking kingpin Cai Jinlian was arrested in Abuja through a joint effort between INTERPOL and National Central Bureau (NCB). Cai was prosecuted in China in 2020, for serious wildlife crimes. Intelligence led the authorities to Abuja, where he had fled to and was living as a fugitive.

He has now been repatriated to China and is expected to face prosecution for smuggling around 12 tonnes of endangered tree-pangolin scales. As the alleged kingpin behind the trafficking operation, Cai's arrest represents a significant step towards dismantling the criminal networks driving the illegal wildlife trade. ✅

We congratulate the Chinese Government for its commitment to this case, and determination to bring those responsible to justice. We also commend INTERPOL and NCB for their cooperation in locating and apprehending a high-level wildlife trafficker. This case is a strong reminder that intelligence-led investigations, international cooperation, and persistence are key to disrupting transnational criminal networks and holding those responsible for wildlife crime to account.

Wildlife trafficking is driven by organised criminal networks. Stopping it requires more than reacting to individual sei...
08/05/2026

Wildlife trafficking is driven by organised criminal networks. Stopping it requires more than reacting to individual seizures.

🔎 An intelligence-led approach turns information into actionable intelligence, revealing how criminal networks operate, who is involved, and where they are most vulnerable.

By supporting law enforcement with these insights, the Wildlife Justice Commission helps disrupt the networks behind wildlife crime. 🌿

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