Latest news with #customsseizure
Fox News
6 days ago
- Fox News
German customs officials seize 1,500 tarantulas smuggled in international spongecake shipment
German customs authorities recently made a skin-crawling discovery when they found about 1,500 young tarantulas concealed in a shipment of spongecake boxes. The package, which had arrived at Germany's Cologne Bonn Airport three weeks ago from Vietnam, weighed more than 15 pounds and had a noticeable smell that tipped off officials, according to a news release from the Cologne customs office. "My colleagues at the airport are regularly surprised by the contents of prohibited packages from all over the world, but the fact that they found around 1,500 small plastic containers containing young tarantulas in this package left even the most experienced among them speechless," Jens Ahland, spokesperson for the Cologne customs office, said in a statement. "An extraordinary seizure for German Customs, even though we are saddened by what some people do to animals purely for profit." Many of the tarantulas did not survive the trip, and the surviving spiders were placed in professional care. Criminal proceedings are underway against the package's recipient in the Sauerland region of the country, according to the news release. "Animals of any kind must be declared to customs and import duties paid for parcels from a non-EU member state," the release noted. Last year, a passenger was busted at Miami International Airport for trying to get onto an airplane with a bag of snakes in the passenger's pants. The TSA shared images of the reptiles on X at the time, writing that officers in Florida "detected this bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's pants at a checkpoint." Jens Ahland did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
South China Morning Post
7 days ago
- South China Morning Post
1,500 tarantulas found in cake boxes at German airport: custom officers ‘speechless'
German customs authorities have found some 1,500 tarantulas concealed within chocolate sponge cake boxes at Cologne/Bonn Airport during a seizure. Cologne customs spokesman Jens Ahland said on Monday that the package, which came from Vietnam, had a 'distinctive smell' that did not match the declared 7kg (15lbs) of cakes. Crammed into small plastic containers and hidden in cake packaging, the venomous spiders were apparently intended for a recipient in the western German Sauerland region. 'My colleagues at the airport are regularly surprised by prohibited package contents from all over the world, but finding around 1,500 small plastic containers with young tarantulas in this package left even the most experienced among them speechless,' Ahland said in a statement. Ahland said it was an 'extraordinary seizure', but it had saddened authorities to see what some people do to animals for profit. A number of the animals had died, while the remaining living spiders were handed over to specialists. The chocolate sponge-cake boxes the tarantulas were shipped in to Cologne Bonn airport, western Germany. Photo: Haupzollamt Koeln/AP Ahland said that the estimated value of the shipment was being assessed.
The Guardian
14-07-2025
- The Guardian
About 1,500 tarantulas found hidden in cake boxes at German airport
Arachnophobes beware: customs officials have released photos from a seizure of roughly 1,500 young tarantulas found inside plastic containers that were hidden in chocolate sponge cake boxes shipped to an airport in western Germany. Customs officials said on Monday they had found the shipment at Cologne Bonn airport in a package that had arrived from Vietnam. A Cologne customs office spokesperson, Jens Ahland, said they had been tipped off by a 'noticeable smell' that did not resemble the expected aroma of the 7kg (about 15lb) of the confectionery treats. 'My colleagues at the airport are regularly surprised by the contents of prohibited packages from all over the world, but the fact that they found around 1,500 small plastic containers containing young tarantulas in this package left even the most experienced among them speechless,' Ahland said in a statement. Ahland hailed an 'extraordinary seizure', but one that 'saddens us to see what some people do to animals purely for profit'. Many of the eight-legged creatures did not survive the trip, in a suspected violation of German animal welfare rules, while survivors were given to the care of an expert handler, the office said. Reached by phone, Ahland said the estimated value of the shipment was being assessed. Criminal proceedings are under way against the intended recipient in the Sauerland region, east of the airport, in part for alleged violations of failure to pay the proper import duties and make the proper customs declarations, the office said. The tarantulas were discovered about three weeks ago, but the customs office only made the images public on Monday.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Yahoo
German customs officials show images of tarantulas hidden in spongecake boxes after smuggling bust
BERLIN (AP) — Arachnophobes beware: Customs officials on Monday released photos from a seizure of roughly 1,500 young tarantulas found inside plastic containers that had been hidden in chocolate spongecake boxes shipped to an airport in western Germany. Customs officials found the shipment at Cologne Bonn airport in a package that had arrived from Vietnam, tipped off by a 'noticeable smell' that didn't resemble the expected aroma of the 7 kilograms (about 15 pounds) of the confectionery treats, Cologne customs office spokesman Jens Ahland said. "My colleagues at the airport are regularly surprised by the contents of prohibited packages from all over the world, but the fact that they found around 1,500 small plastic containers containing young tarantulas in this package left even the most experienced among them speechless,' Ahland said in a statement. Ahland hailed an 'extraordinary seizure," but one that "saddens us to see what some people do to animals purely for profit.' Many of the eight-legged creatures didn't survive the trip, in a suspected violation of German animal-welfare rules, while survivors were given to the care of an expert handler, the office said. Reached by phone, Ahland said that the estimated value of the shipment was being assessed. Criminal proceedings are underway against the intended recipient in the Sauerland region, east of the airport, in part for alleged violations of failure to pay the proper import duties and make the proper customs declarations, the office said. The tarantulas were discovered about three weeks ago, but the customs office only made the images public on Monday.
Associated Press
14-07-2025
- Associated Press
German customs officials show images of tarantulas hidden in spongecake boxes after smuggling bust
BERLIN (AP) — Arachnophobes beware: Customs officials on Monday released photos from a seizure of roughly 1,500 young tarantulas found inside plastic containers that had been hidden in chocolate spongecake boxes shipped to an airport in western Germany. Customs officials found the shipment at Cologne Bonn airport in a package that had arrived from Vietnam, tipped off by a 'noticeable smell' that didn't resemble the expected aroma of the 7 kilograms (about 15 pounds) of the confectionery treats, Cologne customs office spokesman Jens Ahland said. 'My colleagues at the airport are regularly surprised by the contents of prohibited packages from all over the world, but the fact that they found around 1,500 small plastic containers containing young tarantulas in this package left even the most experienced among them speechless,' Ahland said in a statement. Ahland hailed an 'extraordinary seizure,' but one that 'saddens us to see what some people do to animals purely for profit.' Many of the eight-legged creatures didn't survive the trip, in a suspected violation of German animal-welfare rules, while survivors were given to the care of an expert handler, the office said. Reached by phone, Ahland said that the estimated value of the shipment was being assessed. Criminal proceedings are underway against the intended recipient in the Sauerland region, east of the airport, in part for alleged violations of failure to pay the proper import duties and make the proper customs declarations, the office said. The tarantulas were discovered about three weeks ago, but the customs office only made the images public on Monday.
