Photo: Sonny Tumbelaka/AFP via Getty
The youngorangutanfound drugged in a smuggler’s luggage at a Bali airport earlier this year is set to return to the wild.
In March, authorities searched a Russian man’s luggage at an international airport on the Indonesian island, where they found a 2-year-old orangutan stashed inside a rattan basket. Two geckos and five lizards were also found in the luggage.
The animal trafficker, who was sentenced in July to one year in prison, was attempting to take the endangered species to Russia, according toAFP. Earlier this week, the wildlife authorities who were caring for the ape — and who gave him the name Bon Bon — announced that he will be traveling to a conservation center in Sumatra, the animal’s homeland.
Bon Bon, December 2019.Sonny Tumbelaka/AFP via Getty
According to theNew York Times, Andrei Zhestkov, the man who attempted to smuggle Bon Bon, told authorities that he paid $3,000 for the animal on the island of Java after he claimed a friend told him he could keep it as a pet.
The outlet also reported that Zhestkov used allergy pills to make Bon Bon unconscious for the trip.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories
Bon Bon.Sonny Tumbelaka/AFP via Getty
The tree-climbing apes are found on the Southeast Asian islands ofBorneo and Sumatra, and, according to theWorld Wildlife Foundation, the two species of orangutans are seriously endangered with an estimated 41,000 Bornean orangutans in the wild and 7,500 Sumatrans.
source: people.com
