Wildlife trafficker detained in Istanbul

ISTANBUL

Turkish Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime Units have successfully uncovered an illegal wildlife trafficking operation in Istanbul's Küçükçekmece district.

Authorities raided the residence of an individual suspected of engaging in the illicit buying and selling of horns and tusks from endangered species covered under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). The operation resulted in the arrest of the alleged trafficker.

During the search, authorities seized prohibited wildlife products estimated at 4 million Turkish Liras ($137,371). The confiscated items included three pairs of mountain goat horns, seven antelope horns, a red deer horn fragment, 23 ivory objects, 16.5 kilograms of mixed mammoth and ivory fragments, 650 grams of whale tusks, 14 buffalo horns and fragments, and seven whale teeth. The detained individual was revealed to be transforming the raw materials in his workshop before selling them on the market.

In a global surge of illegal wildlife trafficking, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport seized 718 animal skulls, including 392 from protected primates, in just seven months. The packages, often bound for the United States, reveal a disturbing trade trend, with small primate skulls fetching 30 to 50 euros each.