Man arrested at Tokyo airport for hiding 200 lizards in socks

Man arrested at Tokyo airport with 200 lizards hidden in socks

A Mexican man was arrested at Tokyo's Haneda airport after customs officers found about 200 lizards in 22 pairs of socks in his suitcase, The Independent reported.

Daniel Isaac Velasco Baltazar, 23, was charged on August 8 with attempting to smuggle reptiles from South Korea into Japan without a declaration, a violation of the country's customs laws. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department said he admitted to bringing the creatures in without a permit.

When the suitcase was opened, one of the lizards was found dead. Nine of them were Mexican alligator lizards. This species is found only in the mountainous forests of Mexico. It is listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Government permission is required to transport these species across the border.

The suspect told investigators that he bought the lizards in Mexico for between 560 ($3.50) and 750 yen ($4.71). The animals are extremely rare in Japan, where they sell for about 100,000 yen ($628).

Tokyo police received an anonymous tip in late July that a Mexican man was trying to smuggle the lizards into the country for an amphibian and reptile show.

Customs officials at Haneda Airport were on high alert after the man arrived. When he arrived, they searched his suitcase. The creatures were found wrapped in socks and T-shirts. In addition to the Mexican alligator lizard, the suitcase contained other species. Authorities are still trying to determine which species they belong to.

Mexican alligator lizards are pale green and move slowly. They live in the pine and oak forests of the Sierra Madre in central Mexico. Their numbers have declined due to logging and the hunting of animals as pets. The species is classified as endangered.

Japan is one of the world's largest markets for exotic reptiles. Airport seizures of smuggled animals are common here. Earlier, it was reported that a Chinese man was imprisoned for a year in Kenya for trying to smuggle ants worth $200 each.