Customs officers at Tashkent airport in Uzbekistan were left stunned after discovering an enormous albino Burmese python in a passenger’s carry-on luggage.
The shocking find was captured on footage showing the man passing through security before being asked to open his bag.
As the passenger unzipped the carry-on, a 10-foot-long python was revealed, curled up and asleep inside. The man was immediately arrested following the discovery.
In a statement released on September 28th, the Customs Department for the Tashkent region confirmed the incident, saying, “An attempt to smuggle a three-meter snake through the ‘Gishtkuprik’ border customs post was uncovered. A passenger’s bag, arriving from a neighboring country, was scanned through an X-ray machine where the snake, which had not been declared either verbally or in the customs documentation, was discovered.”
Authorities believe the animal is a tiger albino python, a species native to South and Southeast Asia. Since the snake is listed in the International Red List of Threatened Species, special permission under the CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) agreement is required to import it into Uzbekistan. However, the passenger did not possess the necessary documents.
An investigation into the smuggling attempt is currently underway. Meanwhile, the python has been safely transferred to the Tashkent Zoo, where experts have confirmed that the animal is in good health.
