The custom authority at the Cochin International Airport has seized 65 kilograms of peacock feathers and 29 tortoises in two separate incidents.
In the first case, the authorities took two Kuala Lumpur bound passengers, Raveendran and Roshni, who were to board Malindo Air, into custody for carrying 65 kilograms of peacock feathers in their checked-in baggage. The duo claimed that they received the feathers from Chennai.
According to Sanjay Bangartale, Assistant Commissioner of the Customs
Department, the peacock feathers were worth a whopping amount of Rs.16.25 lakhs in the international market.
In the second case, the officials detained Mohammad Beeran, a traveller going to Kuala Lampur by Silk Air with 29 tortoises that had uncanny resemblance to star tortoises. Beeran later told the customs officers that he had been tricked into carrying out the operation.
The tortoises are valued at Rs. 15 lakhs. In many European nations, star tortoises are considered a lucky charm and are priced as high as USD 900 per tortoise, said Bangartale.
According to reports, the arrested are to be produced before the
court. The customs department has also handed over the tortoises to
the forest department, while forest officials safely transported the
feathers under custody.
