(July 20) -- There's was a reason he looked nervous when he arrived at the airport in Mexico City. Tucked under his sweater, police say, were 18 little monkeys the man was trying to smuggle, each one hidden in a sock attached to a girdle.
And not just any monkey. Many species of the titi monkeys being carried by Roberto Sol Cabrera are on the international endangered list. Even those not on the list, as well as a whole range of other animals, fetch a high price in the illegal wildlife trade between Mexico and the U.S. and other parts of the world, AOL News was told today.
Cabrera, a 38-year-old Mexican, was selected for a random check when he arrived from Lima, Peru, and became markedly nervous under questioning, London's Daily Telegraph reported. Officials then detected a bulge around Cabrera's waist.
Two of the 6-inch titis were dead when the 16 others were confiscated, according to Mexican police, and Cabrera confessed he had brought the monkeys from Peru and claimed he had put them around his waist to protect them from X-rays at the customs desk, the Telegraph reported.
In a video published by the Mexican Public Safety Agency, Cabrera said he had paid the equivalent of $30 for each monkey in Peru. He was arrested for violating Mexico's restrictions on importing primates and placed in custody.
According to estimates, each monkey could have fetched between $775 and $1,550 in Mexico, which is a key trading center for cross-border sales of illegal wildlife trafficking, the BBC reported.
Adrian Reuter, the Mexico representative for Traffic, an international body that monitors the trade in wildlife, told AOL News today that it's hard to give a current price for wildlife, because it depends on the demands and the availability of certain animals. But many species are traded, and many people are willing to pay high prices for endemic species.
He confirmed that there is a long tradition in South America of people keeping wild animals as pets, particularly parrots, lizards, all kinds of reptiles, even tarantulas.
Cross-border trafficking to the U.S. has existed for a number of years, Reuter said. It's quite an attractive market, with many species being traded, he said. Years back, it was quite common for parrots to be traded in large numbers.
Even white lions have been among the animals traded, Reuter said. He added that it is illegal in Mexico to trade many of the endemic animals that make up the trafficking market.
The U.K.-based Traffic group and Mexican authorities signed a four-year agreement this month to combat illegal trade in wild plants and animals.
At the signing, Reuter said, Mexico's biological heritage is at risk, in part due to illegal wildlife use and trade. This constitutes a threat that needs urgent attention.
Dr. Richard Thomas, the communications coordinator with Traffic, told AOL News today that the trade was encouraged by high profits and that the U.S. was not the only country illegally served by Mexican traders.
Mexico is a major wildlife trafficking gateway for precious species from South and Central America, some northwards into the United States but also to markets in Europe, Japan and Southeast Asia, Thomas said.
He added, As the present case demonstrates, some people are prepared to go to extraordinary lengths and take extreme risks to try and smuggle wildlife quite literally under the noses of enforcement officers.
This kind of illicit monkey business has to stop.
And not just any monkey. Many species of the titi monkeys being carried by Roberto Sol Cabrera are on the international endangered list. Even those not on the list, as well as a whole range of other animals, fetch a high price in the illegal wildlife trade between Mexico and the U.S. and other parts of the world, AOL News was told today.
Cabrera, a 38-year-old Mexican, was selected for a random check when he arrived from Lima, Peru, and became markedly nervous under questioning, London's Daily Telegraph reported. Officials then detected a bulge around Cabrera's waist.
Two of the 6-inch titis were dead when the 16 others were confiscated, according to Mexican police, and Cabrera confessed he had brought the monkeys from Peru and claimed he had put them around his waist to protect them from X-rays at the customs desk, the Telegraph reported.
In a video published by the Mexican Public Safety Agency, Cabrera said he had paid the equivalent of $30 for each monkey in Peru. He was arrested for violating Mexico's restrictions on importing primates and placed in custody.
According to estimates, each monkey could have fetched between $775 and $1,550 in Mexico, which is a key trading center for cross-border sales of illegal wildlife trafficking, the BBC reported.
Adrian Reuter, the Mexico representative for Traffic, an international body that monitors the trade in wildlife, told AOL News today that it's hard to give a current price for wildlife, because it depends on the demands and the availability of certain animals. But many species are traded, and many people are willing to pay high prices for endemic species.
He confirmed that there is a long tradition in South America of people keeping wild animals as pets, particularly parrots, lizards, all kinds of reptiles, even tarantulas.
Cross-border trafficking to the U.S. has existed for a number of years, Reuter said. It's quite an attractive market, with many species being traded, he said. Years back, it was quite common for parrots to be traded in large numbers.
Even white lions have been among the animals traded, Reuter said. He added that it is illegal in Mexico to trade many of the endemic animals that make up the trafficking market.
The U.K.-based Traffic group and Mexican authorities signed a four-year agreement this month to combat illegal trade in wild plants and animals.
At the signing, Reuter said, Mexico's biological heritage is at risk, in part due to illegal wildlife use and trade. This constitutes a threat that needs urgent attention.
Dr. Richard Thomas, the communications coordinator with Traffic, told AOL News today that the trade was encouraged by high profits and that the U.S. was not the only country illegally served by Mexican traders.
Mexico is a major wildlife trafficking gateway for precious species from South and Central America, some northwards into the United States but also to markets in Europe, Japan and Southeast Asia, Thomas said.
He added, As the present case demonstrates, some people are prepared to go to extraordinary lengths and take extreme risks to try and smuggle wildlife quite literally under the noses of enforcement officers.
This kind of illicit monkey business has to stop.
What idiot named those poor things?
