On November 11, the Gia Lai Protection Forest Management Board said local police were working with the regional prosecutor's office and relevant agencies to investigate the destruction of pine trees in Ayun Commune.
According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Environment, the illegal logging was discovered on October 16 in forest compartment 438, managed by the Gia Lai Protection Forest Management Board.
Following the discovery, the management board coordinated with Mang Yang forest rangers and Ayun Commune police to inspect the site.
The inspection found that nearly 700 pine trees had been cut down in an area planted in 1998 and designated as protection forest.
The Gia Lai Forest Protection Department, economic police, regional prosecutors and local police subsequently examined the scene and collected evidence.
The forest management board said investigators were assessing the full extent of the damage and working to identify those responsible.
The Gia Lai Department of Agriculture and Environment has also ordered a review of the responsibilities of organisations and individuals involved in forest management.
It instructed relevant agencies to step up patrols and inspections to detect and prevent further illegal logging.
At the scene, reporters observed that the loggers had targeted large, mature pine trees.
Many trees several decades old had been cut down, leaving stumps measuring 50-70 centimetres in diameter.
Dry pine branches and needles were scattered across the ground, while most of the trunks had been removed, leaving large gaps on the hillsides.
