LYON: Demand for exotic pets drove seizures of live animals to a record high in 2025, the Interpol police agency said Thursday as it announced a clampdown that led to the interception of nearly 30,000 animals.
Interpol said that wildlife crime is now an industry worth more than $20 billion a year, ranging from the movement of thousands of shark fins to banned ivory and primate meat.
In a month-long operation from September 15, law enforcement in 134 countries seized 6,160 birds, 2,040 tortoises, 1,150 reptiles, 208 primates, 46 pangolins, 10 “big cats” and 19,415 other wild animals, Interpol said in a statement. Some 1,100 suspects were detained.
It said that in Qatar, authorities detained a man seeking to sell a primate threatened with extinction for $14,000 on a social media platform. In Brazil, police identified 145 suspects as they rescued more than 200 animals, including in a crackdown on an international golden lion tamarin trafficking ring.
“A shipment from Asia intercepted at a North American mail center contained over 1,300 primate body parts including bones skulls and other derivatives,” the statement said.
