Customs officials seize 78 exotic animals including monkeys at Bengaluru airport

Customs officials in Bengaluru seize 55 ball pythons, 17 king cobras, and 6 dead capuchin monkeys from baggage arriving from Bangkok.

Published on: Sep 8, 2023, 14:43:28 IST

By Yamini C S

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In a shocking incident, customs officials at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) confiscated 72 snakes and six monkeys from a baggage coming from an Bangkok flight. The snakes included 55 ball pythons and 17 king cobras, according to news agency ANI, all of which were alive in the baggage. Sadly, the six capuchin monkeys were all dead.

Officials deported the live animals to their country of origin and disposed of the dead animals with “proper sanitary measures”, according to a statement by the Customs department. (ANI)

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The incident occurred on Wednesday night, when the Air Asia flight - flight number FD 137 - landed in Bengaluru at around 10:30 pm, according to officials.

“The animals were stuffed in baggage and arrived on an Air Asia flight from Bangkok (Flight Number FD 137) which landed at Bengaluru airport at 10:30 pm on Wednesday,” An official statement by the Bengaluru Customs stated.

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"The baggage…was found to contain a total of 78 animals comprising of 55 Ball Pythons (in different colour morphs) and 17 King Cobras. These were found alive and in active condition. However, six (06) Capuchin Monkeys were found to be dead. All the said 78 animals are schedule animals under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and listed under Appendices of CITES,” it added.

Officials seized all the animals under Section 110 of the Customs Act, 1962, deporting the live animals to their country of origin and disposing of the dead animals with “proper sanitary measures”, the statement further stated. More details are awaited as further investigation is underway.

(With inputs from ANI)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Yamini C S
Yamini CS is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with nearly six years of experience in digital journalism. She is part of the India News desk, where she works on a wide range of stories cutting across civic issues, city-based developments, politics, governance, public policy, breaking news, trending topics, and international affairs that have an impact on India. Her role involves tracking fast-moving developments, verifying information from official and on-ground sources, and presenting news in a clear, accessible format for a digital-first audience. A significant part of her work includes handling live blogs during major news events, such as elections, court verdicts, political developments, civic disruptions, protests, weather-related alerts, and unfolding national or international incidents. Through live coverage, she focuses on timely updates to help readers follow complex stories as they evolve. Before moving to the broader India News desk, Yamini was associated with the Bengaluru desk at Hindustan Times, where she extensively covered urban governance, infrastructure, traffic and transport issues, weather events, public grievances, and civic administration in the city. This experience strengthened her grounding in city reporting and sharpened her focus on citizen-centric journalism. She began her career as a correspondent with Reuters after completing a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media. Her early training instilled a strong emphasis on accuracy, sourcing, and news ethics, which continue to shape her reporting style. Outside of work, Yamini enjoys reading across genres, listening to music, and spending time with her family, which help her maintain balance in a fast-paced newsroom environment.Read More

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