by WorldTribune Staff, July 12, 2024 Contract With Our Readers
A man who was passing through the “nothing to declare” gate at the crossing between Hong Kong and the city of Shenzhen, China was stopped by security officials who noticed some suspicious activity.
Customs officials examine a bag of snakes confiscated from a man’s pants. / China CustomsThe activity was taking place inside the man’s trousers.
He was attempting to smuggle 104 live snakes into mainland China.
Upon inspection, security officials found “six canvas drawstring bags” filled with the reptiles inside the man’s pants, a July 10 statement from China Customs said.
“Each bag was found to contain living snakes in all kinds of shapes, sizes and colors,” the statement added.
Video released by Chinese customs shows a pair of agents peering into transparent plastic bags filled with live red, pink and white snakes. While the snakes were mostly small, the sheer amount of squirmy, slithering reptiles was a lot for anyone to carry in their trousers.
China, which is one of the world’s largest animal trafficking hubs, has put in place strict biosecurity and disease control laws which forbid people from bringing in non-native species without permission.
“Those who break the rules will be… held liable in accordance with the law,” the customs authority said, without specifying the man’s punishment.
In 2023 at the same crossing point, a woman was stopped trying to smuggle in five snakes hidden inside her bra, China Customs said.
‘Nothing to declare’? What about the 104 snakes in your pants? added by Editor Two on July 12, 2024
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