Reports from Japan are shaking the planet. On a Japanese beach, more than thirty green sea turtles were discovered stabbed to death. Last Monday, the lifeless creatures were discovered on Kumejima, a tiny island off the coast of Hiroshima. The stab wounds on the neck and flippers appear to have been inflicted by someone attempting to inflict as much damage and agony onto beautiful animals as possible before killing them in the assault.
The events on the beach shocked locals. Some folks believe that a fisherman murdered the turtles since they most likely became trapped in his fishing nets. According to the Japanese news site Mainichi, at least one fishing business has acknowledged killing some of the turtles as a result of their getting entangled in his gillnets.
The attack on the gorgeous animals was described as follows by the operator.
“I disentangled some of the [turtles] and released them into the sea, but I couldn’t free [the] heavy ones, so I stabbed them to get rid of them.”
Following the sensational news of this turtle slaughter, local authorities have launched an investigation into animal cruelty. Officers were dispatched to a remote island with about 9,000 inhabitants where they are investigating. It is not yet known if police officers from the mainland made any arrests or achieved any progress in the case.
Green sea turtles are protected in Japan, as well as by international treaty, and are considered an endangered species by Japanese authorities and conservation organizations. They are frequently found on Kumejima, a tiny island off the coast of Okinawa that has seaweed and kelp beds. The volcanic island is approximately 1,200 miles from mainland Japan.
The Sea Turtle Museum has been assisting in the effort to save these sea turtles. When they heard about the violent crime, employees from the Sea Turtle Museum arrived on the scene immediately. They were not able to save the turtles since most of them had already died upon their arrival.
One employee said: “I have never seen anything like this before. It is extremely difficult to process this.”
Readers expressed their disgust after reading the article.
“What is wrong with people?” one person said.
Another added, “I had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to encounter one and swim with. It is a beautiful memory. How cruel one can be to cause such horror (in the natural world).”
“Poor things,” another wrote.
“For god sake, what the hell is wrong with people. This upsets me so much.”
“This callous disregard for marine life is shameful. I hope the people responsible are prosecuted.”
“When you think (human beings) cannot sink any lower, you read this.”
“How utterly horrific and sad,” another person wrote.
What would you do to the individuals who murdered these green sea turtles? Do you think that imprisonment is an adequate punishment?
