Smugglers Shift To Bangladesh For Smuggling Wildlife Into Klia

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Wildlife smugglers have now begun using the Bangladeshi airport to bring protected animals into Malaysia via KLIA.
On Tuesday (Sept 30, 2025), the Bangladeshi Wildlife Crime Control Unit (WCCU) posted on its Facebook page the arrest of a passenger at Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport who was travelling to KLIA.
According to the report, officers from Dhaka’s Wildlife and Nature Conservation Division (WCCU) and the Civil Aviation Authority acted on an intelligence report and stopped the passenger who was travelling with two luggage.
Checks on the luggage found 925 Indian star tortoises and Indian roofed turtles, all weighing 58kg.
ADSAuthorities believed the wildlife animals, which are listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) Appendix I, which refers to a list of species threatened with extinction, that prohibit commercial international trade and strictly regulate trade for other purposes to protect these species, are being smuggled into Kuala Lumpur.
WCCU has filed a case against the detained passenger at the airport’s police station.
It said smuggling is a serious punishable offence under Section 6 and 34(b) of the Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act 2012, and Section 25-B of the Special Powers Act 1974 under Bangladeshi law.
Top smuggling hub
Malaysia has emerged as a major transit hub for illegal wildlife trafficking in Southeast Asia and is among the top 10 global smuggling hubs, according to the Global Organised Crime Index.
In June this year, KLIA was identified as a top wildlife smuggling hub into three major Indian airports, with a Thai airport sharing the dubious honour.
Using data obtained via India’s Right to Information Act, India’s The New Indian Express said that between 2024 and this year, customs officials at Kempegowda International Airport have made 23 wildlife seizures originating from Thailand and Malaysia.
Wildlife trafficking represents a major global criminal enterprise, with demand driven by traditional medicine, exotic pets, jewellery and accessories, and trophy hunting.
The trade threatens biodiversity and is regulated internationally through Cites, of which Malaysia is a signatory. - Mkini

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