Basildon zoo convicted over lioness sale
August 2003

Carla at Basildon Zoo.

The owner of the former Basildon Zoo, Yolande Surcouf, has been fined £750 plus £500 costs after being convicted under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 in a case brought by Basildon District Council.

The conviction relates to the sale of a lioness to undercover reporters from the BBC programme 'The UK's Worst Pet Shops', which was aired in February (see previous report). The programme showed undercover footage of Mrs Surcouf selling the zoo's lioness, Carla, to reporters for £1,500 and commenting "I don't care if you chop her up into lion steaks."

The vet seen on camera assisting in the sale and commenting "We're an expert in cover-up jobs" had already been struck off for disgraceful conduct in an unrelated incident by the time the programme was broadcast.

CAPS welcomed the court case and conviction but questioned whether the fine is a real deterrent against a similar incident happening in the future. The incident also reveals how zoos are involved in selling 'surplus' animals, either legally or illegally.

CAPS have called on Basildon Council to revoke Mrs Surcouf's licence to keep other animals under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act.

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Photographs © Captive Animals Protection Society