Tiffin Box Turtles: A Smuggling Bust at Mumbai Airport

Mumbai Customs seized 12 turtles hidden in tiffin boxes from two passengers at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. The reptiles, in distress, were handed to RAWW experts for care. The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau plans to deport the smuggled turtles under wildlife protection laws.

In a surprising wildlife trafficking bust, Mumbai Customs officials detained two passengers at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport with 12 turtles concealed in tiffin boxes.

Authorities revealed the distressed reptiles, hidden among food packets, were red-cheeked mud turtles and Japanese pond turtles, both protected species.

The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau has ordered the turtles' deportation, enforcing provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, following the arrest of the smugglers.

(With inputs from agencies.)