German customs officers found 92 reptiles in the suitcase of a 45-year-old Mexican firefighter at Cologne/Bonn Airport three weeks ago: 37 live venomous snakes and 55 lizards.
The man had flown from Mexico City via Istanbul. When he tried to leave through the airport’s green customs channel, officers checked his luggage. A drug test on his palms indicated cocaine, but no drugs were found on him or in his suitcase.
The animals had been hidden in plastic containers, shampoo and cream bottles, and bundles of socks. The man said he was taking them to Germany as a favour for a Brazilian acquaintance, but could not identify the reptile species.
