Police in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City have arrested 12 men suspected of running a ring that stole and resold about 2,700 cats for meat

ByThe Associated Press

October 6, 2026, 2:08 AM

1:58

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HANOI, Vietnam — Police in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City arrested 12 men suspected of operating a citywide ring that stole and resold about 2,700 cats for meat, Vietnamese state media said.

Police identified 39-year-old Luu Thanh Binh as the alleged leader of the network. He and 11 others were being investigated for theft, state media said Monday.

Investigators said Binh bought stolen cats, kept them at a facility in the city’s north and resold them for meat. He worked with suppliers who recruited others to ride motorcycles through residential neighborhoods between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m., hunting for cats and trapping four to 10 cats each night.

Eating dog and cat meat is not unique to Vietnam and has been practiced in parts of Asia, though it is not common practice. In Vietnam, cat meat traditionally is more commonly consumed in the north, among older generations.

The practice has declined with growing pet ownership and urbanization, and younger Vietnamese are more likely to regard dogs and cats as companion animals.

In 2024, more than 250,000 people signed a petition calling for an end to Vietnam’s dog and cat meat trade. The city of Hoi An also pledged in 2021 to end the sale and consumption of dog and cat meat.

Some believe eating cat meat brings good luck, though there is no scientific evidence for such claims.

Police raided the network on July 8 and found about 50 cats and dozens of traps, state media reported.

The suspects told investigators they had stolen and sold about 2,700 cats, the reports said. Police did not say how long the operation had been running.

Police returned 13 of the cats confiscated in the raid to their owners. A nonprofit animal rights group was caring for the others while authorities sought to identify their owners.

Under Vietnamese law, dogs and cats are considered private property, and stealing them is considered theft. Criminal prosecution generally applies when the value of the stolen property exceeds 2 million dong ($77).

In a separate raid in June, police reported they had rescued more than 400 cats. At least 40 were reunited with their owners, but dozens of dead cats were found packed in ice.

Vietnamese police arrest 12 suspected of snatching cats for meat – ABC News

3 NH men plead guilty in scheme to sell 41 illegally hunted bobcats

Hazel Gandhi

USA TODAY NETWORK – New England

Oct. 5, 2026, 9:50 a.m. ET

Three New Hampshire men pleaded guilty in federal court to the illegal hunting of wild bobcats, according to a press release by the Department of Justice.

Sherwood Dubrey Jr., 48 and Randy Inman, 49, pleaded guilty in federal court for conspiring to violate the Lacey Act, banning the illegal hunting and trade of wildlife, and Sherwood Dubrey Sr. 72, pleaded guilty to violating it.

Between 2018 and 2022, the three men illegally exported at least 41 bobcat pelts, according to the charges. Dubrey Jr. and Inman face a maximum prison term of five years and Dubrey Sr. faces a maximum term of one year. Their sentencing has been scheduled for January 2027.

“The people of New Hampshire have enacted hunting laws that conserve our resources and define our sense of fair play,” said Erin Creegan, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Hampshire in the press release. According to prosecutors, the men hunted the bobcats illegally in New Hampshire and transported them to New York, where hunting them is legal. Dubrey Sr. then obtained false permits –– known as CITES tags –– to make the bobcats appear as if they were hunted in New York, and then shipped them to Canada for a fur auction.

“Crossing state or international lines will not protect poachers from accountability for their actions,” Creegan added.Love crosswords? Explore the Crossword page and play the new MidGrid Crossword.

Text messages obtained from the men show that they acknoledged their hunting activities were illegal, but carried on anyway. On one occasion, Dubrey Jr. even told his father that he hopes bobcat hunting remains illegal in New Hampshire to avoid “competition.”

What is the Lacey Act?

The Lacey Act, enacted in 1900, is a landmark conservation law banning the illegal hunting, transporting, trading, buying and selling of certain wildlife. The Lacey Act made it a federal crime to “import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign commerce any wildlife that was taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law or regulation of any State or in violation of any foreign law.” 

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The act also makes it illegal to mislabel wildlife kills and misrepresent where they’re from.

In May 2008, an amendment to the act also banned the trade of illegally sourced plants or plant products under the purview of the law.

Are bobcats endangered in New Hampshire?

While bobcats are not endangered in New Hampshire, they are a protected species and hence illegal to hunt. The three men have been charged with using bait piles to lure the bobcats to be shot.

Past efforts by the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department to introduce bobcat hunting seasons have received strong opposition from wildlife conservation groups, who say that bobcats can be easily confused with the Canada lynx, a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.

Assistant Director Doug Ault, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement, said the men “falsified where the animals were taken so they could be sold on the international market,” and added, “Our message is clear—exploiting wildlife for profit has consequences, and we will work with our state partners to bring those responsible to justice.”