Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo — State prosecutors raided and dismantled Animalandia Maya on Friday, a business accused of exploiting wild felines for tourist photos, and documents reveal that former mayor Lili Campos Miranda granted the operating permit in 2022.
The permit, issued by Campos’s administration, allowed the business to operate until September 2025, despite ongoing complaints about animal cruelty. The document, numbered UNyEIA/PAO/C/300/2022-3, was signed by José Luis Pérez Dolores, then director of Normativity and Environmental Impact Assessment, and authorized the business to take photographs with animals. The permit cost only 1,629 pesos in rights fees.
Félix Sandoval Jaime, identified as the owner, was arrested during the raid. The establishment was located on Quinta Avenida between 12th and 12th Bis streets, one of the busiest areas of the Riviera Maya.
The delay in action by the current municipal government, officials said, stemmed from the lack of legal grounds to shut down the business while the permit was still valid.
In February, a group of foreign residents in Playa del Carmen launched a Change.org petition demanding the permanent closure of Animalandia Maya, citing the use of wild feline cubs, including tigers, for exhibition and photo sessions.
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