A SEA turtle, about 60 years old, was found dead on Monday morning, December 11, in the seawaters off Barangay San Roque, Ginatilan, Cebu.
Municipal Environment and Natural Resources officer John Rosen Ferraren said the turtle either died of old age or it was hit by a disease.
He said the turtle, which weighed more than 100 kilos, may have been dead for several days.
The turtle's length is a little over 100 centimeters and nearly a meter in diameter.
Police are looking into the possibility that the marine mammal was killed by a poacher.
Fishermen who retrieved the turtle found a rope tied around its neck. The front right and rear flippers were missing, while the internal organs were rotten.
"Baho na kaayo ang pawikan," Ferraren said in a phone interview.
They buried the turtle in a lot in San Roque rented by the Municipal Government.
Ferraren said turtles often frequent their marine sanctuaries of San Roque and Poblacion.
He said they often remind fisherfolk not to catch endangered species and the municipal personnel conduct regular inspection in the market. (KAL/SunStar Cebu)