- Customs officials in the Philippines have seized 1,529 live turtles found wrapped in duct tape inside four suitcases abandoned at the international airport in Manila.
- The confiscated turtles include threatened species like the Indian star tortoise, red-footed tortoise, and the sulcata or African spurred tortoise, as well as red-eared sliders, one of the most commonly traded turtles in the world.
- The officials say the suitcases belonged to a Filipino passenger who had arrived on a flight from Hong Kong. If caught, the passenger could face up to two years in jail and a fine of up to $3,800 for violating the country’s wildlife and customs laws, customs authorities said.
- The seized turtles, estimated to be worth $86,000, have been turned over to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources–Wildlife Traffic Monitoring Unit.
Customs officials in the Philippines have seized 1,529 live turtles that they found wrapped in duct tape inside four suitcases abandoned at Manila’s international airport.
The confiscated turtles include threatened species like the Indian star tortoise (Geochelone elegans), red-footed tortoise (Chelonoidis carbonarius), and the sulcata or African spurred tortoise (Centrochelys sulcata). The bags also contained red-eared sliders (Trachemys scripta elegans), one of the most commonly traded turtles in the world.
The officials say the suitcases belonged to a Filipino passenger who had arrived at Terminal 2 of Ninoy Aquino International Airport on a flight from Hong Kong. “The passenger may have been informed of the vigilance of the port against illegal wildlife trade and its penalties, thus leaving the four (4) x-rayed luggage unclaimed in the arrival area,” the Philippine Bureau of Customs said in a press release on March 4.
The seized turtles, estimated to be worth 4.5 million pesos ($86,000), have been turned over to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Wildlife Traffic Monitoring Unit. The identified passenger, if caught, could face up to two years in jail and a fine of up to 200,000 pesos ($3,800) for violating the country’s wildlife and customs laws, Manila airport customs chief Carmelita Talusan told AFP.
The illegal wildlife trade is among biggest threats to several turtle species. One of the seized species, the Indian star tortoise, was the “single most seized species of tortoise in the world in 2016,” according to TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network. Nearly 15,000 Indian star tortoises were seized from the illegal trade between 2016 and 2018 alone.
“Philippines Customs is congratulated for stopping this illegal shipment from entering its market,” Kanitha Krishnasamy, TRAFFIC’s director for Southeast Asia, said in a statement. “None of the turtles found are native to Hong Kong and could have been sourced from all corners of the globe.”
Philippine officials have regularly seized smuggled wildlife. Earlier this year, they intercepted 63 iguanas, chameleon and bearded dragons, while in 2018 they turned over “a total of 560 wildlife and endangered species including the 250 geckos, 254 corals and other reptiles which were smuggled through air parcels, baggage and shipments” to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
