Smuggler caught with dozens of venomous vipers "concealed in checked-in baggage" on plane, customs officials say
Smuggler caught with dozens of venomous vipers "concealed in checked-in baggage" on plane, customs officials say
A passenger smuggling dozens of venomous vipers in checked-in baggage was stopped after flying into Mumbai, India, from Thailand, Indian customs officials said.
A passenger smuggling dozens of venomous vipers was stopped after flying into the financial capital Mumbai, India, from Thailand, Indian customs officials said.
The snakes, which included 44 Indonesian pit vipers, were "concealed in checked-in baggage," Mumbai Customs said in a statement late Sunday.
"An Indian national arriving from Thailand was arrested," it added.
The passenger also had three Spider-tailed horned vipers — which are venomous, but usually only target small prey such as birds — as well as five Asian leaf turtles.
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Thank you, I scrolled all the way to the end of the comments and was worried this wouldn’t be here.
If they were dead, they'd be carrion.
Were they monkey-fighting snakes on a Monday-Friday plane?
I don't see the problem. Even with all those venom glands, it should still be less than 3 ounces of liquid.
what about the blood?
I’m slightly curious about what efforts to pack and segment/compartmentalize the snakes were.
But I kind of assume this was a “cram an ether rag and all the snakes into a garbage bag” operation.
Do flights from Thailand to Mumbai not have x-ray screenings for baggage, or is this a very weird bribery situation? I know some places only have metal detectors for people, but I have not seen any airport which doesn't scan baggage.
They do.
There are non-venomous vipers?
If their venom glands are removed. Note: this is super cruel and has a high risk of failure