A view of the Mumbai airport
Credit: PTI Photo
Mumbai: A total of 120 live exotic wild animals, including iguanas and Sumatran striped rabbits, were seized at Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport here, an official said on Thursday.
Customs officials made the recovery on Wednesday night from the luggage of two Mumbai residents who arrived in the city from Bangkok, he said. The duo was subsequently arrested.
The official said that 120 live animals, including brown basilisk lizards, iguanas, Sumatra striped rabbits and cuscus, were found stuffed into small plastic and jute boxes.
As per the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, the Customs and Wildlife Crime Control Bureau are sending back the animals to the country from which they were illegally trafficked, the official said.
Experts from RAWW (Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare) assisted in rescuing and stabilising the animals, he added.