A smuggling organization that secretly brought endangered exotic species into the country was caught by customs enforcement. Among the smuggled endangered exotic species was the 'Komodo dragon,' estimated to have only about 5,000 individuals worldwide. The Komodo dragon has never been officially imported into Korea, and this is the first time smuggling of this species has been detected.
Incheon Airport Customs of the Korea Customs Service announced on the 14th that from May to October, they conducted a 'special crackdown on exotic species smuggling' and arrested 14 suspects who smuggled 1,865 exotic species, including the internationally endangered species (CITES Appendix I) Komodo dragon.
The exotic species smuggled by the group are valued at approximately 1.9 billion KRW. Incheon Airport Customs referred the suspects to the prosecution without detention on charges of violating the Customs Act.
The special crackdown involved analyzing and monitoring the movements of previous exotic species smugglers and travelers from high-risk areas. During this process, Incheon Airport Customs first arrested a smuggling courier arriving from Thailand on May 30, and through additional investigations such as raids, forensic analysis, and account tracing, they tracked down and arrested accomplices.
During the investigation, exotic species that were being stored after smuggling were also seized. The seized species mainly included lizards, turtles, and scorpions. Among them were rare exotic species listed in CITES Appendix I, such as the Komodo dragon and the emerald tree boa, valued from tens of millions to hundreds of millions of KRW.
In particular, the Komodo dragon is an endangered species (large lizard) native to Komodo Island, Indonesia, with an estimated global population of fewer than 5,000 individuals. According to Incheon Airport Customs, there has been no official import record of this species into Korea, and this is the first case of smuggling detection.
Investigation results revealed that the group smuggled exotic species from Thailand, Indonesia, and other places from July 2022 to May this year. They concealed the animals in underwear, instant noodle containers, and cigarette packs to evade customs inspections.
The main suspects, Mr. A and Mr. B, recruited acquaintances by enticing them with free overseas trips to use them as smuggling couriers to avoid customs inspections. Considering that endangered species cannot be traded legally, these main suspects sold the smuggled species online through platforms such as Naver Cafes or to specialized reptile shops.
In this process, the group made enormous economic profits. For example, they purchased a Burmese star tortoise in Thailand for 300,000 KRW and sold it domestically for 4 million KRW, earning a 12-fold profit.
Among the smugglers, Mr. C was also found to have participated in smuggling with the intention of exhibiting Komodo dragons at his aquarium. During this process, Mr. C applied for prior import permission from the local environmental office to disguise the Komodo dragons as legally imported individuals, but the application was rejected after it was discovered that the supporting documents were forged.
An official from Incheon Airport Customs stated, “From the early stages of the case, we closely cooperated with the National Institute of Ecology to ensure that the live exotic species seized were protected,” and added, “Smuggling of internationally endangered species and other exotic species disrupts the domestic ecosystem and threatens public safety. Customs will continue to make efforts to block the illegal import of exotic species at the border stage.”
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