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Over 200 Endangered Tortoises Labelled As "Seafood" Seized In Sri Lanka
NDTV
The live tortoises, stuffed inside cloth sacks and packed in six boxes labelled as "dried seafood", were being smuggled out to Kuala Lumpur.
Sri Lankan customs officers have seized 206 live star tortoises, which are listed as an endangered species, that were being smuggled to Malaysia in boxes labelled as "dried seafood", the largest such capture since 2015.
The Biodiversity, Cultural and National Heritage Protection Division of Sri Lanka customs seized the live tortoises at the Air Cargo Exports Terminal of Colombo international airport on Saturday, a customs release said.
The live tortoises, stuffed inside cloth sacks and packed in six boxes labelled as "dried seafood", were being smuggled out to Kuala Lumpur, it said.
According to the officials, it was the largest seizure since mid-2015 when a bid to smuggle 124 tortoises was foiled.