Kochi airport turns hub for exotic wildlife smuggling from Thailand
'Exotic species' refers to animals not native to a particular habitat or geographical region.
The trafficking modus operandi is relatively simple. Agents in Kerala recruit financially vulnerable individuals by offering them a paid trip to Thailand—covering all expenses in return for smuggling exotic animals back to India. The carriers receive between Rs 30,000 and Rs 40,000 per trip.
In the past seven months, four such passengers, who went to Thailand as tourists, were intercepted by Customs for trafficking rare birds like hyacinth macaws, primates such as white-lipped tamarins and common marmosets, along with tortoises and rabbits.
"These are essentially paid holidays for the carriers," said a Customs officer. "Agents here identify people who are struggling financially. Once they agree, the agents in Bangkok arrange the stay, and the animal is packed into their check-in baggage. On arrival at Cial, someone approaches the passenger to collect the bag."
The animals are smuggled in miserable conditions—crammed into boxes or hidden within baggage, often tied up or sedated and covered with clothing or paper.
Investigators found that Bangkok-based agents photograph carriers before departure and send the image to their Kerala counterparts. "Once the passenger lands at Cial, the local agent identifies them using the photo. If the carrier is intercepted at the airport, the handlers waiting outside flee," said the official, noting that exotic animals fetch high prices and there are people ready to buy them.
Customs officers intercept traffickers by profiling passengers who make frequent short trips to Thailand.
"If suspicious images turn up during baggage scans, we open the luggage," an official said. "In all three recent cases, the passengers flew Thai Airways. We've alerted the airline, but the trafficking continues. Since transporting these animals is legal in Thailand, that is why it becomes a major source of trafficking," said an officer.
However, what handicaps the investigators is that their investigation reaches a dead end with the arrest of the carriers.
"Most carriers have no contact information for the dealers or handlers. They're kept deliberately in the dark about the wider network," said a forest department official.
He said in two recent cases, the seized animals were sent back to Bangkok on the same flight following court orders. "However, in the June 30 case, the animals were too young and required immediate care. They were moved to a zoological park in Thrissur for veterinary attention," said the official.
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