A Malayan flying fox hangs on a branch at Singapore Zoo fragile forest biodome in Singapore on October 25, 2022. (Photo by Roslan RAHMAN / AFP) (Photo by ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty Images)
A Thai woman was arrested earlier this month after filming herself enjoying a bowl of bat soup – made with a protected species – and posting video of the sickening act on YouTube.
Phonchanok Srisunaklua posted the video to her channel, titled “Gin Zap Bep Nua Nua,” which roughly translates to “eat spicy and delicious” in English, according to the Daily Mail.
A Thai woman was arrested this month after she filmed herself devouring a bowl of bat soup.
The stomach-churning one-minute and 40-second clip shows the woman sitting at a table in front of a bowl of dark-colored soup containing cherry tomatoes and several Lesser Asiatic yellow bats.
Srisunaklua, described as a teacher, then proceeds to pick up one of the dead bats and rip it apart before dipping the meat into a sauce known as Nim Jam.
During the viral video, she reportedly told viewers that it was her first time eating a bat, and added that she had bought the protected species from a market near the Laos border in northern Thailand.
She went on to praise the unsettling dish, describing the soup as “delicious” while comparing the texture to raw meat.
The head of the wildlife health management group at the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation said he was “shocked” by the viral clip, and noted eating bats poses serious health risks to humans.
“Because the incident should not happen both in Thailand and around the world, it is very risky behavior, especially as bats have a lot of pathogens,” Pattaraphon Manee-on explained.
Manee-on went on to say that no amount of preparation or heat can actually make bats safe to eat, and said that even touching the saliva, blood and skin of the wild animal is considered “a risk.”
“There is no proof that the hot water temperature will actually kill the germs. Just touching the saliva, blood, and the skin is considered a risk. Besides the concern about the disease in bats, this woman could be guilty of breaking the Preservation and Protection and Wildlife Act, B.E. 2019, because bats are protected animals.”
Srisunaklua was eventually arrested shortly after the video went viral and charged with “possession of protected wildlife carcasses” and “crimes violating the Computer Crimes Act,” the outlet reports.
Despite initially denying the accusations, she ultimately ended up posting an apology video where she told viewers she would never eat a bat again.
She’s now facing a five-year jail sentence and a $13,800 fine, according to the outlet.
