At least 402 chamelons were recovered from the check-in baggage of a passenger who arrived at the Chennai airport. The chamelons were packed in transparent plastic containers that were tightly sealed with the powerful grip of duct tape. In a similar incident last year, 22 snakes of different species, and one Chameleon were recovered from a woman passenger's bag at Chennai airport. The passenger had arrived from Malaysia. The woman was arrested by the customs department on her arrival from Kuala Lumpur.
In January 2023, in a similar incident, 45 ball pythons, three marmosets, three-star tortoises and eight corn snakes were recovered by the Customs department of Chennai Airport. According to the customs official, 45 ball pythons, three marmosets, three-star tortoises and eight corn snakes were recovered after two unattended bags found near the baggage claim belt of a pax who arrived from Bangkok were examined on January 11.
It further said that the recovered wildlife species were deported to Bangkok on January 12. The recovered wildlife species have been deported to Bangkok by FD-154 on 12.01.23 under the deportation order issued by the Department of Animal Quarantine and Certification Services," the customs official said, as per ANI.