The police are taking action against firebrand zookeeper Anton Cutajar after he threatenend newly-appointed Animal Rights Commissioner Alison Bezzina on social media, independent candidate Arnold Cassola said.
The cyber crime unit of the Police Force have informed Cassola that they have secured the video posted on Facebook by Anton Cutajar, where he threatens Bezzina.
In the video, Cutajar, who owns the illegally built but later sanctioned Arka ta' Noe Zoo in Siggiewi, said that he will act to force Bezzina out of new post if she tries to make any moves against his zoo.
"I will send the letters to who I need to send them to, in order to to remove you from your post, and make sure that your time as commissioner is up," Cutajar threatened.
"Although Prime Minister Robert Abela appointed you as the animal welfare commissioner, you do not understand animals and do not care about them. You are only concerned with removing zoos and with picking on me," Cutajar, who has no discernible qualifications in the care of animals, said.
"The more you attack me, the more I'm strengthened because I was raised as a Mintoffjan," he said.
The video rant came after Bezzina's said in an interview that "the only so called benefit that zoo animals get from being handled and petted is that they get used to being around people and being handled by them."
She added that, "this is more beneficial to people than to the animals themselves who should not be caged in the first place." Bezzina stated that the ideal situation would be that of having no zoos in the country.
Cutajar has since deleted the half-hour long video from his Facebook profile.
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In reply to an email sent to the police by Cassola, the police said that they will be taking the necessary action to ensure that Cutajar will not persist in his threats and bullying attitude.
Controversy erupted a few weeks back when the government put up new draft regulations on the keeping of wild animals for public consultation. Animal Rights Minister Anton Refalo had initially said that the controversial practice of animal petting would be banned, but this was changed barely 24 hours after the draft regulations were published, in what is an apparent goverment u-turn. The ministry has now told The Malta Independent that the first version that was put online was the incorrect one.
Activists believe that the government reversed its original decision after facing pressure by zoo owners.
The growing number of voices against zoos includes ADPD, which said today that these establishments are just vanity projects with no benfits for conservation.