Cologne airport venomous snakes seized: customs officials stopped a 45-year-old Mexican firefighter at Cologne Bonn Airport after finding 37 live venomous snakes and 55 lizards hidden in his luggage. The animals were tucked into shampoo and cream bottles, plastic containers and balls of socks. The man was then denied entry to Germany and sent back to Istanbul.
Jens Ahland at Cologne Customs office
Jens Ahland of the Cologne Customs office said his colleagues had never faced anything like it. "My colleagues at the airport are used to a lot when it comes to souvenirs in suitcases, but we've never had 37 live venomous snakes and 55 lizards from Mexico before" he said.
He described a seizure that went far beyond a routine luggage check. Officials said the man looked conspicuously nervous as he tried to go through the green nothing to declare exit, a detail that led to the search and the drugs test that later came back positive for cocaine.
Mexico City via Istanbul
The animals had travelled from Mexico City via Istanbul before reaching Cologne Bonn Airport in Germany. Some of the reptiles were being kept in inhumane conditions, and some died during the trip. The surviving animals are now being looked after at a snake farm in Germany.
The man told officers he had brought the animals back as a favour for a Brazilian acquaintance. Customs officials found vipers, rattlesnakes and other snakes and lizards, including iguanas, among the luggage items, turning the case into a live-animal seizure rather than a simple concealment attempt.
Germany and protected animals
The seizure fits a wider pattern of enforcement in Germany. Last year, customs had over 1,300 seizures nationwide involving more than 56,600 protected animals and plants or products made from them, showing how often protected species move through ordinary travel channels.
Cologne Bonn Airport has seen this before. Six years ago, customs officials found 26 rare reptiles from Mexico hidden inside parcels of toys and sweets, and 10 of those animals were dead. In this case, the surviving reptiles have been removed from the suitcase and the passenger has already been flown back to Istanbul.
That leaves the practical question around the man’s explanation and the Brazilian acquaintance unanswered in public terms, while the animals stay in care in Germany.
