Chinese court sentences man to 12 years in jail for killing rare tiger

Chinese man gets 12 years for killing rare tiger

BEIJING — A court has sentenced a man to 12 years in jail for killing a rare tiger in southwestern China.

The official Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday the court in Xishuangbanna in Yunnan province also ordered Kang Wannian to pay a fine of 100,000 yuan ($14,600), plus 480,000 yuan for state economic losses.

Kang said he shot the animal after dark and did not know it was an endangered Indochinese tiger. The incident took place last February, and Kang surrendered to police in June.

Around 1,300-1,800 Indochinese tigers are estimated to be living in the wild.

Tiger poaching is a problem in China, where tiger skins are sold on the black market and tiger parts are used in traditional medicines.