On May 23, officials from the Ministry of Finance caught a large shipment of illegally transported reptiles at Vienna Airport. Customs officials seized 85 geckos, two snakes and two scorpions from a 50-year-old man.
The 50-year-old traveled from the capital Addis Ababa to Austria, arriving at Vienna airport around noon. When he left the baggage handling hall via the exit for travelers without goods subject to declaration, officers checked the man. In the end, three transport boxes containing the reptiles were found in his luggage.
The animals were then handed over to Schönbrunn Zoo in an already visibly poor state of health.
The total value of the illegal smuggling is around 47,000 euros.
According to the ministry, prices for geckos on the market range from 250 euros to mostly around 600 euros, while snakes and scorpions of the caught species cost around 250 euros each. During his interrogation, the man explained that the animals were “worthless” to him and that he only wanted to take the geckos to feed his snakes.
Source: Krone
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