{"id":351536,"date":"2026-06-16T02:35:37","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T21:05:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/?p=351536"},"modified":"2026-06-16T02:35:37","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T21:05:37","slug":"south-african-police-seize-greater-than-100-live-scorpions-stashed-in-luggage-national","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/16\/south-african-police-seize-greater-than-100-live-scorpions-stashed-in-luggage-national\/","title":{"rendered":"South African police seize greater than 100 live scorpions stashed in luggage – National"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Police in South Africa arrested a 28-year-old man after they found he was trafficking 150 venomous scorpions through Cape Town airport, police said in a press release on Saturday.<\/p>\n

The suspect had concealed the poisonous arachnids, which were alive, between his clothing packed inside his suitcase, in response to police.<\/p>\n

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#sapsWC<\/a> [POLICE ARREST A SUSPECT AND SEIZE 150 LIVE VENOMOUS SCORPIONS AT CAPE TOWN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT]<\/p>\n

An intelligence driven operation between Kuilsriver Stock Theft and Endangered Species Unit and Cape Nature, led to the arrest of a 28-year-old man on Friday, 12 June 2026,\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/7OK14UhVDM<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 SA Police Service \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6 (@SAPoliceService) June 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

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The person was detained on Friday after police shared his description and apprehended him on the airport.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was arrested under the Nature and Environmental Ordinance Act, being in possession of a wild animal,\u201d the statement said, without naming the person or disclosing where his final destination was.<\/p>\n

He is anticipated to look in court on Monday, it added.<\/p>\n

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A picture of the scorpions shared by authorities shows them individually wrapped in plastic. The scorpions have since been handed over to a \u201chaven\u201d for safekeeping, police said.<\/p>\n

This shouldn’t be the one instance of wildlife trafficking in South Africa. Last 12 months, six people were arrested there in reference to a world rhino horn trafficking network allegedly value $14 million, the BBC reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Wild animal trafficking also can have devastating impacts on the ecosystem, and efforts to combat it are sometimes centred on maintaining the country\u2019s wealthy biodiversity.<\/p>\n

In keeping with a report<\/a> by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime on wildlife trafficking in South Africa, \u201csyndicates continually step up their brutal methods to get their hands on our wildlife to satisfy foreign market demands, while also corrupting some government officials and processes aimed toward securing our wildlife resources.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe criminal industry involved in wildlife trafficking runs organized multibillion-dollar operations worldwide, and their criminal enterprises by themselves won’t stop without serious and sustained intervention,\u201d it continued.<\/p>\n

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Rhinoceros horn trafficking increased in South Africa by greater than 210 per cent between 2010 and 2016, the report found and mirrored a rise in domestic rhino poachings.<\/p>\n

The difficulty shouldn’t be limited to South Africa. Last June, customs officials in\u00a0India stopped and arrested an airline passenger travelling from Thailand after they said he was caught smuggling dozens of venomous\u00a0snakes\u00a0and other small reptiles into the busy city of Mumbai.<\/p>\n

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