By Tim Binnall
Authorities in Thailand thwarted an attempted smuggling operation wherein a staggering 87 animals, including a red panda, were stashed in some travelers' luggage. The jaw-dropping bust reportedly occurred on Wednesday at the Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok when customs officers inspected the baggage of six Indian nationals en route to Mumbai. To their consternation, officials discovered that the luggage contained a veritable menagerie of exotic animals that the travelers had hoped to sneak out of the country unnoticed.
Among the creatures saved by way of the smuggling bust were a red panda and a cotton-top tamarin monkey, which are both endangered species, as well as a Sulawesi bear cuscus, which has been classified as 'threatened' by wildlife experts. Additionally, Thai customs officials found a whopping 29 dozen black throat monitor lizards, 21 snakes, and 15 birds. All told, 87 animals were seized by authorities and the suspects were subsequently arrested on an array of charges related to the sizeable smuggling scheme.