Three huge arapaima fish caught in Melaka die after being transferred to Negara Zoo

Fisheries Director-General Adnan Hussain said the men suffered injuries ranging from minor blows to the chest and knees to shortness of breath, FMT reported. The officers were treated at Alor Gajah Hospital.

The capture of the fish, which lasted more than seven hours, was initiated in response to complaints from local residents concerned about the threat of the arapaima to the ecosystem.

The arapaima, native to the Amazon basin and known as one of the largest freshwater species in the world, was illegally kept in a reservoir beneath an abandoned building. Fed by local residents and patrons of a nearby restaurant, the owners voluntarily handed over the fish after realizing legal restrictions against keeping it.