Ruben Stoll Fined After Viral Jaguar Cub Incident in Mountain Pine Ridge

One man has been charged following an investigation into the handling of a jaguar cub inside the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve.  The Belize Forest Department confirmed that Ruben Stoll was charged under the Wildlife Protection Act and fined one thousand Belize dollars. According to the department, Stoll voluntarily returned to Belize and surrendered to authorities as part of the investigation.  The case followed the circulation of a viral video showing several people near a female jaguar and her cub along a logging track within the reserve. In the footage, one person is seen approaching and touching the cub, while another reportedly expressed interest in holding it.  The incident was first reported on July 14 and drew public concern over the safety of both the animals and the individuals involved. The Forest Department subsequently launched an investigation, saying that approaching or interfering with the cub amounted to molesting or disturbing protected wildlife.  Following the investigation, Forest Officer and Wildlife Manager, Victoria Chi says Stoll voluntarily returned to Belize and surrendered to authorities. He was charged and paid a one thousand Belize dollar fine.

Victoria Chi ,Forest Officer and Wildlife Manager: “We did speak to the person, a representative that reached out to the Forest Department and said Ruben would like to come back to Belize to actually assume the consequences of his actions. And so he said, “But we don’t want people to…” He was getting a lot of hate on his Facebook, he was getting a lot of hate on his WhatsApp and he says he doesn’t want that. And I told him we can agree that we will not put a warning out there when he enters at the border or the airport and we will give him the opportunity to come in to the country to hand himself over so that we can proceed with the charges. And that is exactly what Mr. Ruben did. He came in, he said, “I am here. I am willing to take my charges.” he apologized and even the tour guide that goes with him he says he had thought that Mr. Ruben when he jumped out of the vehicle that he would have just gone and taken a picture he never thought that he would go and touch the cub and he says if he knew that that was his intention he too as a tour guide would have told him do not do that because it poses a danger for him, even him as a tour guide because he was the driver. And if the mother was to attack and attack him and jumps and attacks the other two then they would all have suffered the consequences of that. So one of the advice that we normally state and advise the public and tourists, you can observe wildlife. We’re not saying no. You see the wildlife, look at it at a distance, take your pictures if you want to take it, don’t harass it, don’t molest it, don’t stone them, don’t do anything, don’t start to tease them.”

Under Belize’s Wildlife Protection Act, the definition of hunting includes killing, taking or molesting wildlife by any method. Jaguars, scientifically known as Panthera onca, are protected under national law.  While the encounter did not result in any reported injuries, wildlife officials warn that approaching a jaguar cub can be especially dangerous because its mother may be nearby and could respond defensively.  Chi, says the department is also working to strengthen wildlife legislation while continuing to educate the public on the proper way to respond when encountering wild animals.

Victoria Chi ,Forest Officer and Wildlife Manager: “So one thing that we want to advise the public is that our legislation or current legislation is outdated. It is being amended. We are on the final, final stages of it and we want to advise the general public that the penalties that are coming into this new legislations will be higher, will be stiffer and so we must bear in mind that wild animals are protected. All our animals are protected. We don’t want to keep them as pets. We don’t want to have them being sold. We don’t want to kill them. Just leave them as wild because if you are caught now the penalties will come at a higher fine and we will hear a cry afterwards and we are advising you now that change is coming, higher penalties are coming, so for the sake of themselves and the wildlife, leave them alone, let them thrive, let their populations grow, and help us to have more people come to our country to view these animals but not to molest them in that case. We are hoping that the new legislation is here by the end of this year. So by the end of this year some of the wording will change because again, people were not happy with the hunting, they don’t believe it was hunting, they were not harassing and so on. All of those things have been ironed out in the new proposed bill that we have. So all of these things, we have sat down, we have looked at it very carefully and we are having something very strong that we can’t be proud of.” 

The Forest Department is reminding Belizeans and visitors that wild animals should not be treated as pets, tourist attractions or opportunities for photographs. Members of the public are advised to observe wildlife from a safe distance, avoid touching or handling animals and report suspected violations to the relevant authorities