Two sisters have bravely testified in a Tasmanian court recounting their efforts to stop a man from taking a penguin and its eggs from Low Head.
The Launceston Magistrates Court heard from Cherie Phillips and Stacey Pendrey as witnesses in the trial of Mohamed Ali Taha, who is facing two charges of taking protected wildlife without authorization and one count of interfering with a nest, breeding place, or habitation on reserved land.
Taha, from Prospect, pleaded not guilty during his court appearance on Monday. The alleged incident occurred on July 26, 2020, at the Low Head historic site, home to the Low Head lighthouse and the Low Head Penguin Tours, where Taha reportedly took a penguin and some eggs.
The sisters were visiting the lighthouse and attending a penguin tour with their mother and children when they noticed men in a car parked next to them acting suspiciously.
After returning to their car, they saw an individual with a cardboard box and heard what sounded like “screeching” and “squawking” bird-like sounds, which they understood to be a penguin.
One of the sisters immediately shouted at the man, “Oi, you can’t take animals!” When the man dropped the cardboard box, a small penguin fell out and ran under one of their cars
Ms Phillips said the men shut the boot of their car, got inside, and turned up the volume of their stereo, which she believed was an attempt to drown out the penguin sounds.
The sisters said that an older man in the area had looked inside the car boot and had seen a penguin and eggs in a cardboard box.
The matter was adjourned to September this year when more witnesses were unable to attend.
