'Cold-blooded': 4 charged over alleged plot to smuggle AU$1.2 million in Australian reptiles

SYDNEY — An Australian task force devoted to stopping illegal reptile exports announced the disruption of a “cold-blooded and cruel” criminal group allegedly trying to send AU$1.2 million ($808,000) worth of highly-sought native lizards and other reptiles from Sydney to Hong Kong.

The Whyaratta Strike Force, part of the anti-biker Raptor Squad, said that four people have been charged over the alleged plot to hide hundreds of the bound reptiles in small chip packets and handbags.

Police released 257 reptiles, mostly lizards, New South Wales state Police Force said in a statement Monday.

Police estimate each reptile would sell for an average of 5,000 Australian dollars ($3,365) on the black market, making the haul of protected species worth more than AU$1.2 million ($808,000).

The rescued reptiles were handed to various zoos and wildlife parks to be examined by veterinarians before being released into the wild, police said.

Detective Superintendent Andrew Koutsoufis called the alleged plot “cold-blooded and cruel.”

The police strike force to investigate illegal reptile exports was established in September last year after nine packages containing 59 lizards were intercepted on their way to Hong Kong.

Three men and a woman — aged from 31 to 59 — were arrested at various places in New South Wales between Dec. 20 and last week, police said.

They have been charged with various offenses relating to the alleged smuggling operation.