John
09-27-2009, 02:43 PM
Man had 1,700 animals in car boot
Traffic cops in Italy pulled over a motorist - and found more than 1,700 animals crammed into the boot of his car.
The patrol pulled over the zoo on wheels in Bari, Italy, for a routine check and police were astonished when driver Francesco Lombardo opened the hatchback.
Inside were 216 budgies, 300 white mice, 150 hamsters, 30 Japanese squirrels, six chameleons and more than 1,000 terrapins, reports Metro.
Police confiscated the entire menagerie and have passed all the animals to nearby zoos while they investigate the driver's links to rare and protected animal smuggling.
"He said he planned to sell the terrapins for 20 Euros each which would have made him a fortune.
"There is no doubt those poor animals were suffering in such a small space," said one officer.
Traffic cops in Italy pulled over a motorist - and found more than 1,700 animals crammed into the boot of his car.
The patrol pulled over the zoo on wheels in Bari, Italy, for a routine check and police were astonished when driver Francesco Lombardo opened the hatchback.
Inside were 216 budgies, 300 white mice, 150 hamsters, 30 Japanese squirrels, six chameleons and more than 1,000 terrapins, reports Metro.
Police confiscated the entire menagerie and have passed all the animals to nearby zoos while they investigate the driver's links to rare and protected animal smuggling.
"He said he planned to sell the terrapins for 20 Euros each which would have made him a fortune.
"There is no doubt those poor animals were suffering in such a small space," said one officer.