Notice: In this article we deal with the white lion Mojo, which disappeared from private ownership in Saxony-Anhalt in 2021.
There is no connection with the current case of a lioness in Kleinmachnow near Berlin.
The private keeping of exotic wild animals represents a high risk in Germany. Again and again, big cats are confiscated and taken to wild animal stations.
Politicians must finally act and introduce a positive list for the private keeping of animals. VIER POFTEN calls for the current incident to be taken into account when amending the Animal Welfare Act!
On January 18th, 2022, filed a criminal complaint against the owner of the white lion Mojo for animal cruelty. There has been no trace of the big cat since February 2021. Mojo’s owner was forbidden by the district of Börde (Saxony-Anhalt) to keep lions on his property due to animal husbandry conditions that were not in line with animal welfare. He was also asked to place Mojo elsewhere. and our partner organizations offered to take the lion to a sanctuary, but Halter refused. After the disappearance of the big cat, neither the authorities nor the courts involved were able to provide information about the whereabouts of the lion. It is a scandal and a danger to the general public that in Germany a fully grown lion can just disappear like that.
We have to assume the worst. European-bred big cats are highly sought after in Asia, both dead and alive. Some animals are sold alive, others are killed right here in Europe and their remains are either sold or processed into traditional medicine. We hope that Mojo was spared this fate and that we will find him healthy again. The offer is still valid: and our partners can take Mojo into a sanctuary and offer him a better life.”
Anyone know of Mojo’s whereabouts? We are offering a reward of 3,000 euros for relevant information that leads to the discovery of the white lion.
Reward Offer Conditions
– Foundation for Animal Welfare is offering a reward of 3,000 euros for any relevant information that leads to the determination of the current whereabouts of the lion Mojo. The reward is given to the person who first provides the information with proof of their identity. – Foundation for Animal Welfare decides on the award, distribution and payment of the awarded amount. The reward will be awarded and distributed without legal recourse. In addition, the reward is intended exclusively for private individuals.
The three and a half year old white lion Mojo was kept by a farmer from Saxony-Anhalt from around the end of 2018 to the beginning of 2021 on his farm near Magdeburg. The owner, who had previously attracted attention for keeping two lions privately, had probably bought them from a Czech breeder. Due to animal welfare violations, the district of Börde decreed that private individuals must give up the adult lion male. In the meantime, he has been generally prohibited from keeping lions, but the ban is regionally limited.
For a short time, Mojo was accommodated for a few weeks in the Bergzoo in Halle because the owner wanted to build a new enclosure, for which he never received a building permit.
The farmer first complained to the administrative court in Magdeburg against the decision of the district and tried, among other things, to postpone the deadline for submission. At the end of 2020 he lost the process. He lodged an objection against this with the Higher Administrative Court of Saxony-Anhalt. But the court also confirmed the previous verdict and in February 2021 again ordered Mojo to be accommodated in an animal-friendly manner.
Since then, the white lion has not been seen again.
After several inquiries, was informed by the responsible authority on April 15, 2021 that, according to information from the owner, Mojo had gone to the Netherlands. However, the Dutch authorities informed the German authorities that he had not arrived there. As a result, a fine was imposed on the owner and he was given a deadline to tell Mojo’s real whereabouts.
All further inquiries from to the district and the responsible courts were left unanswered with reference to the ongoing proceedings.