A NEW taskforce set up by the National Parks Department filed a complaint with police yesterday after confiscating two young elephants from a zoo in Hua Hin in Prachuap Khiri Khan after it found they did not have correct livestock identification forms.

Meanwhile, another team, known as the 'White Shark', launched an investigation into encroachment on a vast area of mangroves in Phuket.

The 'King of the Tigers' taskforce led by Chaiwat Limlikit-aksorn checked the zoo in Hua Hin's Tambon Hin Lek Fai. They found 11 elephants but two did not have correct ID forms.

One, called Plai Bun, was four years old, but had a document that said it was 10 years old. The form also said the elephant had five front nails and four back nails but the elephant had only four nails on both front and back legs. It also did not have a hole on its ear lobe, as described in the ID form.

The officials also seized Plai Moss, 17, which has ivory tusks - while its ID form said it had no tusks.

The officials also suspected that the zoo did not have complete and necessary documents to possess other wild animals such as tigers and bears. They said it had only a licence to operate the zoo but not documents to prove that the state had been notified about its possession of wildlife.

Operators of the zoo were given time to bring the documents to officials, but told if they cannot do that some wildlife would be confiscated.

Meanwhile, the "White Shark" taskforce mustered 200 officials to check several plots in Phuket. They said that more than 2,200 rai of mangrove and coastal forest appeared to have been encroached upon. The officials estimated that seizure of the land - alleged encroachment on mangrove forest cost the state Bt250 million.

more Special teams seize elephants, check forest land - The Nation