Korean actress faces 4 years jail for catching giant clams in Thai national park for reality show

Clamping down on such activities.

Nyi Nyi Thet | July 07, 2019, 11:01 AM

Lee Yeol-eum is an actress perhaps best known for her role in the 2016 Korean drama, "Monster".

She also, like many South Korean celebrities, appears on various reality shows.

One of them being "Law of the Jungle", a Korean reality show that according to them is a "hybrid reality show combining elements of drama with a background in documentary settings".

The show also claims to introduce viewers to exotic locations where "celebrities must work together in order to complete missions and survive".

One of those missions apparently involved cooking freshly caught marine life in a national park in Thailand.

Here is Lee carrying some clams, and then slurping them down.

Image from one31.net

She also pounded on a clam that she ultimately could not pry loose. In total she managed to catch three giant clams.

Image from AllKpop

According to CNA, at the end of her dives, she had proclaimed "I was the happiest person in the world. I did it. I caught this with my own hands,"

Illegal

Catching these particular giant clams with your own hands is actually very illegal.

The Tridacna Gigas is considered to be an endangered species in Thailand, and is protected by the Wild Animal Reservation and Protection Act of 2002.

Image from One31.net

Those who are found violating this law can face up to four years in jail and/or a fine of up to 40,000 baht (S$1,766).

The production team apparently did not inform officials they would be filming in the area, therefore no one was on sight to monitor their activities.

The show's broadcaster has apologised for the incident.

Image from Lee's Instagram and AllKpop