ISTANBUL, Sept 7 (AFP) - Turkish Airport police found 70 baby crocodiles, dehydrated and dying, in the suitcase of a Turkish smuggler returning from Libya, the daily Sabah reported Tuesday.
Fifteen of the animals died but the others were turned over to a zoo in Turkey's main city, Istanbul. An expert quoted by Sabah said the reptiles were a few weeks old and could have been sold for about 100 dollars each.
Crocodiles are protected by the UN Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and it is illegal to import them to Turkey without a permit.