Officials discovered 40 dead tiger cubs in a freezer at Thailand's Tiger Temple on Wednesday, embroiling the popular tourist attraction even deeper into controversy by raising concerns about the temple's participation in the illegal trafficking of endangered animal parts.
Officials were working to remove adult tigers from the temple due to complaints that it was trafficking endangered species after three live adult tigers mysteriously vanished, The New York Times reports. The temple, which is a Buddhist monastery, has rejected all accusations of trafficking, abusing, or exploiting the tigers. "We have declared all the deaths to the officials over years," said Supitpong Pakdjarung, who runs the business side of the temple. "They've known about these carcasses for a long time."
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Tiger parts fetch a high price in many Asian countries, like China, where they are illegally used in traditional medicines.
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