Australian police seized 9 packages from the suspects accused of trying to smuggle 59 lizards to China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
The "Raptor Team" of the state police, established to investigate illegal animal trade, made a statement about the packages planned to be delivered to Hong Kong.
According to 9News, a total of 257 lizards worth more than 1 million dollars were seized as a result of raids carried out throughout the week in the state of NSW, and 4 people were accused of trying to smuggle the reptiles to Hong Kong.
Based on an average of $5,000 per lizard, the total value of the reptiles seized was about $1.2 million, police said.
Superintendent Andrew Koutsoufis said the smuggling attempt was "cruel" and that the lizards, which were kept in small boxes to be shipped overseas, were poorly cared for.
Inspector Koutsoufis claimed the 31-year-old suspect regularly traveled to "remote areas of the Northern Territory in Western Australia" where he would trap lizards and bring them back to Sydney.
He added that the animals were "in high demand overseas" because they were "native to Australia".
