Taiwanese man caught smuggling live animals at Bangkok airport
X-ray scan reveals slow lorises, squirrel, otters, and turtles hidden beneath suspect's clothes
Officers at the wildlife checkpoint at Don Mueang International Airport apprehended a Taiwanese man attempting to smuggle protected animals by concealing them on his body.
According to the official Facebook page of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP), the suspect, identified as 54 year old Chiu Kuo-shu, was arrested yesterday, October 7. Chiu was due to board an outbound flight from Don Mueang Airport to Kaohsiung International Airport in Taiwan.
He was scheduled to depart at 2.35pm, but was stopped at a checkpoint around 1am for further inspection after an X-ray scan revealed suspicious items on his body.
A subsequent search uncovered several live animals hidden beneath his clothing. Officers found two slow lorises, one squirrel, three otters, and two Asian box turtles, each placed in mesh bags and stuffed inside pairs of tights.
Chiu faces four charges, including:
- Section 17 of the Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act: Possessing protected wildlife or their carcasses without permission. Penalty: up to five years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to 500,000 baht, or both.
- Section 93 of the Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act: Exporting wildlife or animal carcasses without permission. Penalty: up to ten years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to 1 million baht, or both.
- Section 242 of the Customs Act: Exporting goods without completing customs procedures or without permission. Penalty: up to ten years’ imprisonment, a fine of four times the value of the goods and customs duty, or both.
- Section 31 of the Animal Epidemics Act: Exporting animals or animal carcasses without a permit. Penalty: up to two years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to 200,000 baht, or both.
The rescued animals were handed over to the DNP for examination and further care.
In a similar case, another Taiwanese national was arrested in December last year at Suvarnabhumi International Airport after officials discovered live animals concealed in his boxer shorts. The animals were reportedly a prairie dog and two Asian small-clawed otters.
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