New Crime Scam: Animal Theft at Zoos

National Geographic, www.nationalgeographic.com, recently reported on the theft of animals from zoos. Thieves are mainly interested in the most valuable animals, i.e. those closest to extinction. Once seized, they are usually transported abroad to make them harder to track. Last year around 200 animals were stolen from British zoos. Investigators assume that the thieves then sell the animals for enormous sums of money. Potential preventative measures could include optical surveillance systems or acoustic alarm systems to prevent nightly thefts, or microchips and other means of identifying or locating the animals. (eap)