Thai police confiscate 100s of dried beetles

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Authorities at Thailand's main international airport in Bangkok confiscated a parcel Monday containing hundreds of dried beetles and spiders, several of them endangered species, police said. The box, destined for a collector in France, contained 1,500 beetles including 17 dried Long-arm Chafer beetles and 15 Ground Beetles, which are protected species under Thai law, Police Lt. Col. Thanayot Kengkasikit said. Some 240 spiders, including Tarantulas, were also among the shipment, Thanayot said. Authorities are searching for a suspect whose name was on the package shipped from the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai to an address in France, Thanayot said. If arrested, the person could face up to four years in prison and a 40,000 baht (US$1,260) fine for possession of endangered species with an intent to export, he said.