"The raid was carried out after a three-month surveillance operation, during which our intelligence officers closely observed the site and the suspect's activities," said the chief of Bali Police's crime investigation division, Sr. Comr. Andi Taqdir Rahmantiro.

The suspect was identified as Jero Mangku Budha (50), the owner of a food stall that allegedly sells traditional delicacies made of turtle meat.

"We believe the suspect uses the turtles to cater for his food stall's demand," he added.

Inside the warehouse on Jl. Pulau Enggano, Pemogan, the officers found that a large number of the protected species weighed around 200 kilograms with an average age of 70 years.

"They could command a street price up to Rp 4 million per turtle," an officer said.

Rahmantiro said that the turtles were poached in the waters near Sulawesi before being shipped to Bali.

The illegal poachers unloaded the turtles from their fishing boat on Monday at Amed, a traditional fishing port some 90 kilometers east of Denpasar.

The turtles were then transported to Denpasar via land.

"The suspect has admitted that he bought the turtles for Rp 35 million," Rahmantiro added.

He said the investigation started some three months ago when plainclothes detectives were assigned to conduct a surveillance operation at the suspect's food stall on Jl. Bangka, Pemogan.

The suspect claimed the food stall only sold lawar (Balinese delicacy made of spicy minced meat mixed with shredded vegetables) made of cow meat.

However, the officers received numerous tips that the food stall also sold lawar made of turtle meat

"The surveillance confirmed the food stall did sell lawar made of turtle meat so we began planning our next steps," Rahmantiro said.

Even after his arrest, the suspect tried to convince the detectives that he only sold lawar made of cow's meat.

When the officers produced evidence that refuted his claim, the suspect tried another defense, stating that he had bought the turtles for religious ceremonial purposes.

"He lied and we have enough evidences to prove that," Rahmantiro stressed.

The suspect will be charged with violating Article 21 of the 1990 Conservation of Natural Resources Law, which carries a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment.

"We are now pursuing several other suspects in this case, including the individuals who supplied turtles to the suspect," he said.

The seized turtles have been sent to the Agency for Natural Resources Conservation (BKSDA), which on Thursday released them back into the ocean at Kuta Beach.

Sea turtle heads are an important element in major Balinese Hindu sacrificial rituals.

Sea turtle traders and poachers have for decades used the rituals as a pretext to continue their illegal businesses.

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