A Bangladesh court recently convicted and sentenced five zookeepers to 14 years in prison for killing three tigers and planning to sell their skins.

Three adult royal Bengal tigers died in November 1996 after eating poisoned meat at a zoo in the Bangladesh capital, Dhaka. And this is something you don't expect from the protectors of the endangered species.

Police charged 14 zoo employees with killing the tigers, which are a protected species and a national symbol. But 9 of them were acquitted for lack of evidence. They were trying to prove that it was an accidental death.

Tiger skins are a priced collectors items, and tiger parts are used in traditional medicines in many Asian countries. There are only about 300 Royal Bengal Tigers left in Bangladesh.

This verdict is a milepost in protecting these endangered species.