An American man was caught trying to smuggle 60 reptiles, including snakes and lizards, inside his trousers at an airport.
He planned to smuggle 1700 animals into the US from different countries.
A man who tried to smuggle snakes and lizards into the United States by hiding them in his pants is facing more than 20 years in prison as part of a US$750,000 (S$27 crore) reptile smuggling scheme, authorities said.
Jose Manuel Perez, a resident of Southern California, was arrested by authorities in March of this year when he tried to smuggle more than 60 reptiles, including snakes and snakes, into the United States on a flight from Mexico to the United States.
Upon investigation, it was revealed that he was the mastermind of a massive conspiracy to smuggle 1,700 animals into the United States over six years through Mexico and Hong Kong.
In his statement, he admitted that sometimes he himself smuggled the animals in various ways and at other times he smuggled the animals in crates or luggage without their knowledge by paying others.
He said he has so far sold more than $739,000 to customers across the United States, including Yucatan box turtles, Mexican box turtles, juvenile alligators and Mexican beaded lizards.
At first he told customs agents he was carrying his pet lizards in his pockets, then when Avramidu got up to meet him, a search of him and his suitcases found him carrying 60 animals.
Among them were arboreal crocodile lizards and Isthmian dwarf boas snakes. The Isthmian dwarf boas is a rare species of snake that changes color and bleeds from its eyes as a form of defense.
Three reptiles were found dead in his attempted kidnapping.
Perez is scheduled to be sentenced on December 1 after pleading guilty to two counts of kidnapping, with his case set for trial on Wednesday. One of the offenses carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and the other for wildlife trafficking carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.