The Animal Party voiced its concern on Friday over illegal animal slaughtering methods after a man was found cutting up a kangaroo in the Famagusta district.

The party also called on the state Veterinary Service to explain and account for the prevalence of illegal and “backyard” slaughtering, including the killing of animals without anaesthetising them, as is the requirement for kosher [and halal] meat.

A man was arrested on Wednesday for the illegal slaughter and butchering of a kangaroo in a parking lot, while the supplier of the animal is under investigation.

“The Animal Party has for years warned the state that we must not be running behind the facts and that better pre-emptive actions must be taken as regards exotic and wild species on the island,” it said.

It recalled the presence of elephants, Siberian tigers and bird species at the island’s zoos which it said are incompatible with the island’s climate.

“Strict, targeted and effective” control of all facilities both legal and illegal, must be executed, the party said, in addition to entry-points to prevent imports.

The kangaroo butchering incident in a parking lot in Dherynia is still being investigated, authorities said on Friday.

It has now been confirmed that the animal had been procured from an animal facility in the vicinity and that it was slaughtered at the scene.

Police have taken a statement from the owner of the enclosure where more kangaroos, as well as other species, are being kept and investigations are ongoing into whether the animals had been correctly registered, Famagusta police spokesman Andreas Konstantinou told the CyBC.

It is also being investigated whether the owner had previously sold animals for consumption.

An autopsy is still pending on the animal remains, senior Veterinary Services officer Ioannis Ioannou said with police later announcing this would be completed on Monday.

The arrest of a Cameroonian national caught cutting up the kangaroo with another man who fled the scene was reported to widespread bewilderment and outrage on Thursday.

Speaking to Cyprus Mail, Ioannou had said the incident raised concern over illegal animal containment facilities on the island.

Only three official and registered zoos operate legally in Cyprus, the Limassol Zoo, the Paphos Zoo and the Ocean Aquarium in Paralimni. All other facilities housing exotic animals ought to have been registered by 2021.

In that year, legislation changed and the keeping of exotic species was criminalised, however, owners of such animals already present on the island had been mandated to register them so they could keep them.

Ioannou clarified that mandatory registration had been enacted for the purpose of ensuring the animals were housed in suitable conditions and to prevent reproduction of banned species. Importation and sale of exotic species was also made illegal at that time.

Special permits must be secured for the keeping of any animals to be sold for consumption of meat, or other products, Ioannou said. He added that household pets such as pythons and deer were also illegal if not registered.

The veterinary service currently has no accurate data on which exotic species are being kept unregistered on the island and in what numbers.

“It is of course extremely difficult for authorities to carry out pre-emptive checks on home premises and illegal cases generally come to light only when reported,” Ioannou explained.

The latest incident of possession of a kangaroo came to light when a tip-off led officers to the parking lot of an apartment building, where the animal was being butchered.

One of the two individuals fled the scene, while the second, a 36-year-old man, was arrested. Police found plastic bags containing animal parts, an axe and five knives.

When questioned, the suspect said he had received the animal from a third party in Paralimni.

The 36-year-old was later identified by police as an illegal resident since his request for asylum had been rejected in 2022, and he was taken into custody.

Police told Cyprus Mail that dismemberment and/or butchering of any animal in private and not at an approved slaughterhouse is an illegal offence, as public health protocols, as well as animal welfare regulations, are violated by this act.

Consumption of kangaroo meat is not illegal and well-known supermarket chains have stocked the product in the past, which has been a staple source of protein in Australia for thousands of years. Proponents have promoted it as a healthy, low-fat, high-protein dietary choice.

In the EU the biggest importer of kangaroo meat is Belgium, also the second largest importer worldwide, however, a campaign to ban its consumption has intensified since 2018 due to charges that the animals are killed en masse in cruel and inhumane ways.