RATCHABURI — Thailand is returning four baby orangutans to Indonesia on Monday, nearly a year after authorities seized them from suspected wildlife traffickers in separate operations.
Thai and Indonesian officials conducted final health checks on the orangutans at Wildlife Rescue Center No. 3 in Ratchaburi Province ahead of their departure, the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation announced.
The four orangutans — two males and two females — were confiscated in January and May from illegal smuggling operations. Three were seized in Chumphon Province in January, while another was recovered during a sting operation in Bangkok’s Lat Phrao district in May. A second orangutan from the Bangkok case died.
Thai officials named the animals J, Raikhing, Noon and Bow during their care.
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Indonesian veterinarians examined the orangutans and recommended transporting them in three crates to minimize stress. The two males will travel in separate crates while the two females will share one, officials said. The orangutans are scheduled to depart Suvarnabhumi Airport on Garuda Indonesia flight GA867 to Jakarta on Tuesday morning, December 23.
Saduedee Panbhakdee, director of the Wildlife and Plant Convention Protection Division, said the repatriation represents cooperation between Thailand and Indonesia under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.
Thai and Indonesian officials pose for a photo at Wildlife Rescue Center No. 3 in Ratchaburi Province, Thailand, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, following final health checks on four orangutans being repatriated to Indonesia.Orangutans are listed in CITES Appendix 1, which prohibits all commercial international trade. Thailand has seized orangutans six times between 2016 and 2025, caring for 74 animals total.
Thailand last returned three orangutans to Indonesia in December 2023 after nearly seven years of care.
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