A man has been arrested after allegedly trying to sell a tiger cub he was illegally in possession of.
On January 23, police in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, arrested Carlos Eduardo Castro Alcaraz, 25, after he tried to flog the animal online.
Police received a tip that the animal was being sold via social media for a whopping $25,000 (£20,000) leading officers to pose as potential buyers.
READ MORE: Plane passenger's fury as airline gives suitcase to charity despite it not being missing
Fox10 reports they managed to negotiate a price of $20,000 (£16,000) for the cub leading officers to be provided with a search warrant to search his home.
Officers inspected the property at 27th Avenue and Baseline Road and located the animal in what was described as a “very small cage”.
Other animals were also located at the house, including a juvenile American alligator and baby snapping turtles.
Sergeant Brian Bower with the Phoenix Police Department said: "When they were doing that search warrant, you could hear the tiger in the background moaning.
"You could hear that something wasn’t right.
Hero Brit aid workers killed during Ukraine evacuation as families pay tribute
"The tiger, specifically, was in a very small cage. Kind of a cage that you would find as a dog kennel. Approximately two to three feet."
All animals were subsequently handed over to the Arizona Game and Fish Department.
Alcaraz said that he saw someone else not taking care of the tiger properly and bought it from them for $8,000 (£6,450).
Officials, however, say they do not know where he might have got the animals from.
Kristy Hayden, President of Wildlife World Zoo, told Fox10: "It's not something you hear about happening often here in Arizona. However, it is a problem.
"It's a problem worldwide, and it’s a problem that greatly affects the population of these tigers.”
She added: "That little cub is going to grow up to a 500lbs tiger, and tigers are apex predators.
"That tiger can not only hurt you, but that tiger is a liability to everyone around them, and then the tiger ultimately can pay if something happens."
For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here .
READ NEXT:
Killer elephant's 2-year spree of terror finally over as 'cool customer' caught at last
Woman hit by rollercoaster in 'worst crash docs had seen' finally out of hospital
Asteroid travelling at 33,300mph set to crash into Earth's atmosphere this week
Source: Read Full Article
