10,000 live turtles is not your average, everyday find in customs.
Customs agents in India were surprised to catch two passengers attempting to smuggle them on a plane.
The reptiles were crammed in three separate bags, and discovered while waiting to be put on a conveyor belt in transit from China to Singapore. It has not been stated why the bags were deemed suspicious, but it is lucky for the turtles that they were.
“10,043 numbers of exotic varieties of the turtles have been seized from two passengers, residents of Chennai, who were coming from China to Singapore, and landed at Kolkata airport,” said assistant commissioner of Airport Customs, Nabnit Kumar.
An investigation has been launched into the incident at Kolkata airport, and the two nationals have been detained. Sadly, all sea turtles are on the list of endangered species according to the World Wildlife Fund.
This is due to exploitation and poaching, mainly. These type of turtles can be used for eggs, skin, shells, and meat. This is likely why they were being moved.
Hopefully, this find will not only save the turtles, but bring some attention to the plight of the sea turtle. It’s past the time for humans to realize that we impact the health of our planet directly. It’s sad that these two individuals were almost successful in the transport of so many turtles. It makes one consider how many other times this crime was committed.
So what does 10,000 turtles found in a suitcases in India look like? Check out the video below.
Source:
India customs seize 10000 turtles in luggage
http://dunyanews.tv/index.php/en/WeirdNews/184024-India-customs-seize-10000-turtles-in-luggage
India customs seize 10,000 turtles in luggage
