Bug hunters detained in India plead innocent

Two Czech bug hunters arrested in India for poaching have maintained their innocence and called to be released. Emil Kučera and Petr Švácha are currently being detained in Darjeeling, awaiting their trial which is set to take place on July 21. The Indian press has suggested that the Czechs could belong to an international network of butterfly smugglers. If found guilty of poaching from the Singalila National Park, the pair could face up to seven years in prison. In a phone call to their colleague from the Czech Entomologists’ Association, Messrs Kučera and Švácha insisted that they were innocent.