This week, House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) and Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chairman Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) initiated an investigation into the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (USFWS) "Operation Long Tail Liberation." The inquiry addresses concerns over the use of taxpayer funds to pay a Chinese national informant in efforts to investigate illegal primate smuggling.

In a letter to USFWS Director Martha Williams, the committee members highlighted their concerns about the operation, which involved career employees spending millions of taxpayer dollars without yielding the desired results. They wrote: "At issue in this matter is an investigation by Service law enforcement agents of activities carried out in the Kingdom of Cambodia relating to the purported trade of wild long-tailed macaques."

The letter details that during "Operation Long Tail Liberation," USFWS relied on a paid informant, Veng Lim Yeung, also known as "Francis," who was working at a primate facility in Cambodia. Yeung was introduced to USFWS by Sarah Kite from Cruelty-Free International, an environmental organization based in London. Initially seeking a salary, Yeung received almost $225,000 from USFWS over the course of the investigation.

Yeung admitted to installing spyware on his employer's computer, providing access to security cameras, and stealing a visitor logbook for USFWS agents. Following his cooperation with U.S. authorities, Yeung and his family were relocated to the United States at government expense. Additionally, he was assisted in setting up a bank account and given support to secure housing and work authorization.

The committee members expressed concern over these expenditures: "All of this was at significant expense to the taxpayer and to the Service’s programs."

Read the full letter here.

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