SEPANG: Efforts to smuggle out four agile gibbons were thwarted when the Border Control and Protection Agency prevented a local man from boarding his flight to Mumbai.
The Border Control and Protection Agency, in a statement on Sunday (June 22), said the incident occurred on June 20 at Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal One.
The protected species were discovered during a bag check on the suspect's luggage.
"The 34-year-old Malaysian was then detained and brought to the Aeropolis police district headquarters for further investigation.
"The animals, estimated to be worth around RM30,000, were then handed over to the Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) for further action," the statement said.
The arrest was the result of stricter enforcement checks by the agency and their partners that began on June 1, focusing on the illegal smuggling of protected species, especially along high-risk flight sectors.
