An operation at Istanbul Airport revealed that Lorenzo P., Director of the world-renowned American National Museum of Natural History, was detained on smuggling charges. According to the allegations, the suspect was trying to smuggle endemic poisonous animals living in Anatolia abroad.
Istanbul Police Department Anti-Smuggling Crimes Branch teams, as a result of their work, determined that the DNA information of endemic species of poisonous animals living in Turkey was copied and their poisons were used in medicine production by milking method. Determining that these species were attempted to be illegally exported abroad, the teams organized an operation at Istanbul Airport.
During the operation, Lorenzo P., the director of the American National Museum of Natural History in New York, was detained on his way to the US. During a search of the suspect’s luggage, 88 plastic bottles containing liquid and 58 clip-on bags containing approximately 1500 endemic animals such as scorpions, tarantulas and spiders were seized.
The suspect, against whom proceedings were initiated for “opposing the Anti-Smuggling Law 5607”, continues his procedures at the police station. The endemic animals seized within the scope of the operation were exhibited to the press at Istanbul Security Directorate’s Vatan Street campus.
It was also claimed that the market value of 1 liter of medicine obtained from scorpion venom was approximately 10 million dollars. This operation carried out at Istanbul Airport has once again demonstrated the importance of the fight against the trade of endemic animals that are being smuggled abroad.
