Over 8000 turtles Hidden in Suitcases

More than 8,000 turtles being smuggled out of Indonesia were intercepted this week by officials, according to an AFP report.

The turtles were found hidden in suitcases thought to be destined for Singapore and China, where the reptiles are sold as exotic pets and occasionally end up in food markets.

Friday officials at Jakarta’s main airport discovered nearly 3,000 of the turtles in four suitcases after being told to be on the lookout for turtle smuggling. Thursday officials in Papua, one of the few places in the world where pig-nosed turtles occur naturally, found a cache of about 5,400 of the turtles hidden in seven suitcases, the AFP reported.

Abidi said that pig-nosed turtles smuggled through Jakarta are usually sent to Singapore or China, where they are sold as exotic pets and sometimes end up in food markets.

All the turtles would be returned to their natural habitat in Papua, Abidi said.

He added that police knew who had checked in the luggage but their whereabouts were now unknown.
The pig-nosed turtle is only found in Australia and New Guinea, an island shared between Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, and is protected under Indonesian conservation laws.
It has a distinctive snout-like nose and webbed feet.

Canadajournal/AFP