Smelly House In Madagascar
As the smell continued to get worse and worse, no one could really put a finger on what it could be. After all, the people believed that the house the smell was coming from was abandoned, so what could it possibly be? In fact, the smell was so bad that not many people even wanted to go inside of the house to explore. There was also the fact that, even though the home was thought to be abandoned, that it would be trespassing to walk onto the property.
Town In Madagascar
The neighbors who lived near the house knew that they had to do something about this smell. The odor coming from the home was starting to affect their day to day lives, and those who lived close to the house was starting to smell the odor in their own homes! Many people wanted to tell the police, but others didn’t want to bother the busy cops with such a potentially small thing. Some people also suggested that they report the home to the city as overrun, but then, something new happened…
Police in Madagascar
Though the house was thought to be abandoned for a long time, suddenly people began to notice that there were signs around the home that someone was going in and out. Finally, someone noticed several people going in and out of the home. The neighbors were totally shocked that there were people even going near the smelly house, not to mention going inside of it. But, over the next few days, the smell began to dissipate. Could these people actually be cleaning up the odor?
Madagascar Village
Just when the villagers thought that the smell was gone, it came back, and it was even worse than before. So, the neighbors who lived around the home all met, and they knew that they had to do something about the smell coming from the home. They didn’t want to intrude upon the property, so as a group, they decided to contact the local police department. They told the cops that the smell was concerning, and the police thought they knew exactly what it was.
Police In Madagascar
What do you think the police thought was in the house? If you guessed some type of dead, decaying body, you are right. This wouldn’t be totally uncommon, and based on the odor coming from the home, it would make sense. So, before the police officers entered the smelly house, they gathered their forces. They took a couple of the neighbors with them to guide them around, and they brought one of the local medical examiners. Hopefully, it would just be a routine situation.
Ready To Inspect The House
Though police were pretty convinced that the odor was coming from a dead body, there was also the chance that animals could be causing the smell. After all, this is Madagascar, and it is home to more than 200,000 different animal species. So, the police also contacted a wildlife expert, Soary Randrianjafizanaka. She was the head of the Wildlife Committee, and she also lived in the area, so she, too, was curious about the smell.
Soary Randrianjafizanaka
With the team now assembled, police were ready to investigate. There were many ideas of what might be causing the odor, but no one really suspected anything criminal. This was in the town of Toliara, which is a gorgeous town on the southwest coast of Madagascar. It was also considered to be very safe, and is a popular tourist destination.
Toliara, Madagascar
Since this is a town on the coast, and Madagascar, in general, is full of lovely fauna, it made sense for the police to contact Soary Randrianjafizanaka, the wildlife expert. It was not uncommon for animals to find themselves in residential areas, and we all know that wild animals can smell sometimes. So, if it wasn’t a body causing the odor, the next suspect was a wayward animal or two, which had somehow gotten into the house.
Lemurs In Madagascar
Finally, the team was ready to investigate. As the police, the medical examiner, and Randrianjafizanaka approached the home, they were all puzzled. The police weren’t sure what they were smelling, and the medical examiner was all but certain that the odor was not a body. Randrianjafizanaka, too, was puzzled. Though she had smelled a lot of strange things during her career as a wildlife expert, she had never smelled this odor before. All of them were totally confused about what they might encounter when they went inside.
Abandoned Home
From the outside, the police and their team were in agreement; nothing looked out of place, and in fact, it looked like a typical home…other than the odor, of course. The home was large and stately, and at one point had certainly been beautiful. It was strangely quiet, however, and it did look abandoned even though the neighbors had reported seeing people going in and out. Before entering, the police even checked to see if the home was for sale, but it was not listed as such.
House For Sale?
Finally, it was time to go inside. The team walked in and the stench was totally overwhelming. Some of the police officers even report that they became lightheaded, and that the odor burned their nostrils. Upon entering, everything still looked normal, but the oder was stronger than ever. They didn’t know what the source of the smell was at this point, but Randrianjafizanaka started to believe that it was animal waste. However, it was still a smell that she wasn’t familiar with.
What Was The Smell?
Though the home looked normal upon entering, short of the smell, it was quite obvious that no one was living there. However, it was still possible that people were visiting the home. Could the people seen by the neighbors be the source of the smell? As they made their way deeper into the home it only created more questions than answers. The home was almost empty, and it was silent. The only thing that was so puzzling was the source of the horrendous odor.
Abandoned Home Interior
As the team made their way deeper into the home, they still didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. That is, until they heard a sound coming from elsewhere in the home. Though it wasn’t extremely loud, the entire team heard it. They were all on their guard, and they were sure that they were now not the only people on the property. Someone else was there, and they were making noise, but who was it?
Who Is In The House?
When the team came face-to-face with the people in the house, they immediately noticed that they had shovels. On top of that, the other people were quickly digging holes, and there were some strange objects around them. The team was shocked, and they didn’t know what they were looking at. Everything that they were thinking before about the odor was thrown out. The house was definitely not abandoned, and there were people digging strange holes.
Digging In The Ground
The police approached the strangers and asked what they were doing. After all, this was very strange behavior. It was very obvious to the team that the people digging were trying to hide something, and even as the police moved closer to them, they began to drop their shovels one by one. This definitely looked like guilty behavior, but the police and their team didn’t really know what they were looking at yet…
Shovel In A Hole
Upon seeing the police, the people who were digging had just dropped their shovels, and now they slowly put their hands up in the air, as if they were very guilty of something and waiting to get arrested. The police were pretty clueless, but they did place the diggers under arrest. After the diggers had been arrested, the police were able to go back into the house. With the diggers out of the way, they could fully explore.
Police Van In Madagascar
Now that the team was able to explore, they went deeper into the house. It was apparent that no one could have lived there. Everything was dark, falling apart, and there was no life. Cobwebs seemed to go from floor to ceiling. But, none of this would have caused the offensive smell from what they could see. Then, they noticed that there was a weird movement in some areas of the floor. At first, the team had no idea what they were looking at, but then, things became more clear…
Cobwebs
Tortoises. Almost the entire floor was covered in moving tortoises, and they were packed into the room like sardines in a can. There were so many tortoises in the room that they were unable to even count them. Everyone was shocked and really had to process what they were seeing. Randrianjafizanaka, the wildlife expert, stepped into her role. She knew that these tortoises were not normal, but she had no idea what they were, at first. They then realized that these tortoises were crawling all through the house.
Tortoises Covering The Floor
Immediately, Randrianjafizanaka jumped into action. She told the team that they had to get the tortoises out of the terrible conditions as soon as they could. They must relocate them to a safe place. The animals were sick, and many of them were close to death. Every tortoise in there was in danger, and the team had to get them out as quickly as they could. So, with Randrianjafizanaka at the helm, the team began to remove the tortoises.
Tortoises In The Bathroom
As Randrianjafizanaka and the team pulled out the tortoises, she started examining them closer. They were a pretty rare species known as a radiated tortoise. Though they are native to Madagascar, the radiated tortoise was rarely seen in the wild. This tortoise is known for being docile, and they have very unique patterns on their shells. As soon as they realized this, the team knew why the diggers had raised their hands when they saw the police.
Radiated Tortoise
One of the reasons that these tortoises are so rare is because they are losing their habitat, and they are often the target of poachers. In some cases, people even eat them, as these tortoises are considered to be a delicacy. People also like to own them as pets, as they are fairly easy to care for and docile. However, it is illegal to own them. What the police have found here is an underground operation that was stealing these tortoises and selling them.
Many Tortoises
The Radiated Tortoise is considered to be critically endangered. For thousands of years, these tortoises thrived, but by the 1990s, their populations fell to about 12 million. By 2010, however, that number was cut in half, and today, it is estimated that there are only about 3 million left. In that home, more than 10,000 tortoises were found. Unfortunately, more than 100 of them were dead by the time the police found them, and over the next week, almost 600 more died.
Healthy Radiated Tortoises
Though these tortoises were living in horrific conditions and had been treated poorly, the team was happy that they could recover so many of them. Many of them were sick, though, and more than 100 were dead. In fact, the people who were arrested were found to be burying the dead tortoises under ground. The team was very hopeful that they could save more and help to keep the population as strong as possible since these tortoises were so endangered.
Saving The Tortoises
Though the team used so much effort in saving the tortoises, they couldn’t save them all. It was a big job to handle 10,000 tortoises, and most of them were dehydrated and undernourished. A team of vets was on hand to do what they could for the remaining tortoises, and even though they were working around the clock, it was impossible to save them all. The vets did what they could, though, and most were able to be saved even after their ordeal.
Radiated Tortoise
When the neighbors found out what was the cause of the smell, they were totally shocked. Not only was a criminal enterprise operating in their neighborhood, but there were 10,000 endangered animals inside of it. If these people hadn’t stepped in, it would be likely that the tortoises would not have ever been saved. Thankfully, this story quickly went viral, so more people from around the world can now keep an eye out for any strange happenings in their own neighborhoods.
Caring For Radiated Tortoises
People are caught, arrested, and charged with crimes like these all of the time, but it keeps happening over and over. People like this tend to look over the fact that these animals are living, breathing creatures who can feel pain. Instead, they are too focused on money and greed. Also, keep in mind that a lot of these animal smugglers are selling the animals into the pet industry, and many people have even started to boycott the industry as a whole.
Baby Radiated Tortoises
When all was said and done, a little less than 9,000 of the tortoises were able to survive. But, the team now had another problem…what could they do with thousands of tortoises? The experts were not confident that the tortoises would survive in the wild, but they were also unsure if there was any place that could accommodate the remaining animals. They were out of the woods, health wise, but they were essentially homeless. After all that they had been through, the tortoises deserved the best.
Saving The Tortoises
After further discussion, the vets decided that none of the tortoises could be released into the wild. They had been in the house for too long, and they wouldn’t be able to adapt like they should, and it would put them at risk of being captured by poachers, again. Instead, it was decided that they would be sent to be looked after by experts who would always make sure that they are comfortable and safe.
Radiated Tortoise In The Wild
Today, the tortoises have an amazing life. They have all of the food, water, and attention that they could ever want, and experts who are there to take care of them. On top of that, the experts are working to improve the number of Radiated Tortoises in the wild. Since they have more than 8,000 tortoises to start with, things are certainly looking positive for the species as a whole.
Radiated Tortoise Posing For The Camera
The people who had these tortoises had to pay for their crimes. Not only did they illegally hoard the tortoises, they also abused them. People certainly wanted to see them pay for their crimes, and when they went to court, the judge did not take it easy on them. Now, just like the tortoises did, the criminals know what it feels like to be confined and controlled.
Prison In Madagascar
This was not the only crime associated with Radiated Tortoises. In 2016, a small group of Chinese men were arrested and jailed after it was found that they were trying to smuggle over 300 Radiated Tortoises from Madagascar to China. The leader of the group was sentenced to 11 years in prison. The other members of the group received sentences ranging from 21 months to seven years.
Happy Radiated Tortoise
Another case of smuggling involves rhino horns. In this case, the Hawks investigation unit in South Africa caught three men who had 120 rhino horns. They tried to sell some of the horns to any undercover agent. Why rhino horns? In China and Vietnam, the horns are seen as a status symbol and used in medicine. Again, these animals are killed due to the greed of humans.
Rhino With A Horn
Tigers are not immune to the smuggling trade, either, and tigers are also considered to be endangered. In central India, three men were given three years in prison each. Two of the men killed and skinned a tiger, and the third was an actual tiger skin trader. The skin, along with the bones, is used to make a beverage known as tiger wine, which is said to treat impotence and rheumatism.
Tiger Skin
Customs officers from France also recently discovered approximately 2,000 dead seahorses, which were being shipped from Guinea to Vietnam. There, shops sell the seahorse carcasses as souvenirs, and in some cases, use the bodies in traditional medicine. This is a big issue as it is estimated that 24 million seahorses each year are pulled from the sea and brought into the illegal trade industry.
Dead Seahorses
In Amsterdam, a German man was recently arrested at Schipol Airport after it was found that he had several dozen reptiles, including lizards and snakes, hidden in his luggage. Sadly, 40 of the reptiles were dead. the rest were taken to a local reptile shelter. According to authorities, the man was smuggling the reptiles from South Africa to Germany in order to sell them at a reptile fair.
Smuggled Reptile
Lee Arden, a former pet shop owner in Wales, was arrested as he tried to travel from Brazil to London. When his luggage was searched, authorities found just under 1,000 spiders, many of which were rare tarantulas. Each of the spiders was individually packed, but that doesn’t matter. He got a huge fine, jail time, and the spiders were saved.
Tarantula
Roberto Cabrera was caught as he tried to bring 18 titi monkeys from Peru into Mexico. The funny thing about this story is that he never would have been caught, except he made a very stupid move. Instead of simply walking through the X-ray machine with his bags and being on his way, he took the monkeys out and put them in his clothes. He said he didn’t want them hurt by the X-ray machine. Someone saw him and reported it.
Titi Monkey
A Dutchman was caught in 2011 trying to smuggle several hummingbirds through customs in French Guiana. Each bird was wrapped in a piece of cloth, and then he put them into a pouch, which he had sewn into his pants. It probably would have worked, too, if the man hadn’t been fidgeting around. His suspicious behavior alerted customs officers, who eventually found the birds.
Hummingbird
Fish can also be smuggled, as was the case in 2005 when Melbourne, Australia custom officers stopped a woman coming into the country from Singapore. The officers noticed a strange sound coming from under the woman’s skirt described as a “flipping” noise. When the officers looked, they found an apron that was filled with 15 plastic bags. Each bag had water, and there were 51 fish swimming around in them.
Fish In A Bag
