One arrested with 1,163 turtles at airport

Law enforcers arrested a man for attempting to take 1,163 turtles with him to Malaysia on a flight from the Dhaka airport on 27 September.

Mohammad Shahidul Islam of Hasnabad, Mamud Nagar, Tangail, was arrested with 1,163 turtles while he was travelling to Malaysia on Batik Air flight OD161 from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka. A case was filed against him with Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport Police Station for violating the Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act 2026. The turtles were released into their natural habitat.

Earlier, acting on a tip-off, the Wildlife Crime Control Unit of the Forest Department in Agargaon, Dhaka, with the cooperation of the Airport Security Manager of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, airport police, the Department of Livestock Services, an executive magistrate and other law enforcement agencies, seized the turtles and arrested Shahidul, bringing him under legal action.