BANGKOK: Thailand has suspended an airport worker after a traveller smuggled more than 30 live animals, including two baby otters, onto a flight to Taiwan.

The mobile menagerie, which included 28 baby tortoises and a marmot, was seized when the Thai Vietjet flight landed at Taipei’s Taoyuan airport on Wednesday.

Local media reported that the unusual cargo came to light when several of the animals escaped and were found crawling around the plane’s cabin.

Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport said the animals slipped through screening due to human error.

“We have examined the CCTV and found that the smugglers were two foreigners who had their luggage scanned through an X-ray machine,” the airport said in a statement issued late on Thursday.

“One of the staff was suspicious so they assigned another to open the luggage. However, they didn’t check the luggage and allowed the passengers to go through.”

The staff member who failed to inspect the bag properly was suspended while a probe was carried out, the airport said.

Taiwanese authorities said they were investigating the two suspected smugglers. Thailand is a major transit hub for wildlife smugglers who often sell the animals on to China and Vietnam.

Published in Dawn, October 7th, 2023