According to wildlife organization Traffic, thousands of birds were recently caught being illegally exported from the country. They were found back in October at Bandar Bakau Jaya Port, with all of the birds jammed into plastic boxes. Veuer’s Tony Spitz has the details.
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00:00This is what authorities recently confiscated from smugglers in Indonesia.
00:04But it's not drugs or other illicit contraband.
00:06These are cages, each one filled with wild birds that were ready for illegal export.
00:11According to Wildlife Organization Traffic,
00:14some 6,500 birds were recently caught being illegally exported from the country.
00:18They were found back in October at the Bandar Bakau Jayaport,
00:22with all of the birds jammed into plastic boxes.
00:25This video was captured just one day after the discovery,
00:28with authorities releasing them back into the wild.
00:30The birds were found on the back of a truck.
00:32And while the driver was arrested, he maintains he believed the birds were common.
00:36However, experts say some 257 protected species were among the thousands of birds found.
00:42According to the United Nations Development Programme,
00:45the area is a hotspot for wildlife crimes.
00:47They estimate that in Indonesia alone, illegal wildlife trade is a billion-dollar industry.
00:52And despite harsh punishments of up to 10 years in prison,
00:55wildlife trafficking continues to be pervasive.