An April 2022 operation rescued 122 live African grey parrots destined for the illegal pet trade. The trafficker was convicted and sentenced to seven years imprisonment.
In April 2022, officers intercepted a smuggler moving 122 live African grey parrots — a CITES-listed species prized in the illegal pet trade. The birds, crammed into crates for concealment, were rescued alive and placed in care for rehabilitation.
The suspect was charged under the Uganda Wildlife Act, 2019. The prosecution highlighted both the conservation damage of stripping wild parrot populations and the cruelty inherent in live-animal smuggling.
The court convicted the trafficker and imposed a seven-year custodial sentence — one of the heaviest penalties handed down for live-bird trafficking in Uganda and a warning to the networks that supply the exotic pet market.