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September 8, 2015
Iguana Smuggler Caught in the Galapagos
This content is available in English only

A man was caught with 9 marine iguanas and 2 land iguanas this past week in Puerto Ayora.

Gustavo Eduardo Toledo-Albarran from Mexico was caught with the illegal animals in his luggage, and it is believed he is part of a larger network of smugglers. The iguanas were supposedly going to be shipped to Uganda if he got out of the country, where they would be re-sold to illegal animal collectors around the world.

The man caught for smuggling the iguanas was known to some authorities, so it is a curiosity how he was able to enter the Galapagos in the first place. Back in 2010 he was caught smuggling lizards in New Zealand.

The Galapagos Islands have a stricter penalty for wildlife trafficking than New Zealand did years ago, so this man from Mexico has some years in prison to look forward to before he is released back into the wild.

More details at:
Gecko smuggler jailed in NZ in 2010 arrested again, this time with iguanas

Arrest in Galapagos Islands wildlife trafficking

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