At least two persons were apprehended by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) here on Tuesday for trafficking 406 Indian star tortoises.
The 'vulnerable' species were seized at Andhra Pradesh's Vijayawada Railway Station, when two lady passengers tried to export the tortoises in four bags from Kadiri to Bhubaneswar.
The duo admitted that they were asked to hand the tortoises over to some person for export out of India to Bangladesh.
According to the DRI, the species with the zoological name 'Goechelone elegans' has been declared endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and prohibited for export under Foreign Trade policy.
The seized tortoises were later handed over to Vijayawada Forest Range officer for safe custody and further action.
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