Dust-up in Akumal Bay turtle area results in tourist’s arrest

AKUMAL BAY, Q.Roo — A tourist has been detained after assaulting a federal guard of the National Commission of Protected Areas.

The incident occurred Tuesday when an on-duty guard from the National Commission was patrolling the Akumal Bay turtle area in a kayak, riviera-maya-news.com reports. The guard questioned the tourist about being in the turtle area, a regulated area with restrictions in place to prevent further human environmental damage.

The tourist allegedly assaulted the guide by turning him over in the kayak, throwing him into the water. The guard reported the incident to the delegation of the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (Profepa), who in turn, handed the issue over the municipal authorities.

Municipal police arrived and proceeded to arrest the tourist, while additional guards prevented other tourists from kayaking in the turtle area.

The bay is a nesting area for turtles with on-site federal guards to prevent tourists, whose number is regulated, from performing activities that harm sea grass, coral, turtles and other natural elements in the bay.

The municipal delegate also detained other tourists for using kayaks in the turtle area. No names or nationalities of the detained were released.

Source: riviera-maya-news.com