Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Malaysian customs foiled an attempt to smuggle hundreds of the world's most endangered tortoises into the country from Madagascar, a senior official said Monday.
The 330 ploughshare and radiated tortoises seized at Kuala Lumpur International Airport Sunday were worth $276,784, Abdul Wahid Sulong, deputy director of the customs department told AFP.
All of the reptiles were found alive, he added.
"It is a big haul. It could be for the local market or for re-export. We are investigating," the enforcement agency said in a statement.
"Based on public tip-off, customs officials raided the cargo area of the airport and found five suspicious crates," the statement added.
"It had arrived at KLIA on an Etihad Airways flight from Antananarivo airport in Madagascar."
The golden-domed ploughshare tortoise is native to Madagascar and due to poaching is the most endangered tortoise on the planet.
Madagascar's radiated tortoise -- considered one of the most beautiful species of the animal -- is also rapidly nearing extinction due to rampant hunting for its meat and the illegal pet trade.
Abdul Wahid said the contents of the crates were labelled as stones and the address of the recipient was found to be false.
Malaysia bans the import of critically endangered animals. Anyone found guilty of the offence can be jailed for up to three years and fined.
Elizabeth John, senior communications officer of the Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network (Traffic), said the tortoise haul followed on the heels of other busts of animal products originating from Africa, including rhino horn and pangolin scales.
"With the string of recent seizures of wildlife from Africa, Malaysian enforcement agencies are sending a strong warning to smugglers that they mean business," she told AFP.
John said the routes used by traffickers in recent cases point to a need for greater scrutiny of airports in the Middle East.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
The 330 ploughshare and radiated tortoises seized at Kuala Lumpur International Airport Sunday were worth $276,784, Abdul Wahid Sulong, deputy director of the customs department told AFP.
All of the reptiles were found alive, he added.
"Based on public tip-off, customs officials raided the cargo area of the airport and found five suspicious crates," the statement added.
Advertisement
The golden-domed ploughshare tortoise is native to Madagascar and due to poaching is the most endangered tortoise on the planet.
Advertisement
Abdul Wahid said the contents of the crates were labelled as stones and the address of the recipient was found to be false.
Advertisement
Elizabeth John, senior communications officer of the Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network (Traffic), said the tortoise haul followed on the heels of other busts of animal products originating from Africa, including rhino horn and pangolin scales.
Advertisement
John said the routes used by traffickers in recent cases point to a need for greater scrutiny of airports in the Middle East.
Advertisement
COMMENTS
Advertisement
10 Years On, 298 Victims Of MH17 Disaster Still Await Justice Video: Apple Opens First Store In Malaysia, Here's What Samsung Did 6 "Ninja Turtle Gang" Members Arrested In Malaysia, Tortoises Seized CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor: The Culprit Behind World's Biggest IT Outage Massive Worldwide Microsoft Outage: Flights, Markets, Stock Exchange Down Microsoft 'Blue Screen Of Death' Outage: Full List Of Services Hit In India Amid Microsoft Outage, Chromebook, MacBook Users Enjoyed Smooth Operation Time For Rihanna's Fenty To Take A Bow As It Partners With The Olympics Delhi Cops Crack Kidney Sale Racket Operating Across 5 States Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.