Customs officers opened the suitcase - they did not expect to find a dried crocodile head

An Italian citizen returning from a vacation was caught at Turin airport with a dried head of an endangered crocodile species in his suitcase. He faces a fine of up to 200,000 euros and a possible one-year prison sentence. The item was confiscated and the passenger was transferred for investigation on suspicion of smuggling a protected species.

An Italian citizen faces a heavy fine of up to 200,000 euros and a possible one-year prison sentence after a dried head of a critically endangered crocodile species was discovered in his suitcase at Caselle Airport in Turin. The passenger landed on a flight arriving from Miami with a stopover in Istanbul. The reptile head was wrapped in brown packing paper in an attempt to conceal it from security checks and customs officials. The item was confiscated and the passenger was transferred for investigation on suspicion of smuggling a specimen belonging to a protected species. Crocodiles are protected under the 1973 Washington Convention. Italy serves as a major transit hub for illegal trade in exotic animals, much of which is rooted in organized crime syndicates. A report by the World Wildlife Fund noted that in 2025, a chimpanzee being held illegally was confiscated on the island of Sicily. A similar incident occurred last year when a Canadian citizen was arrested in New Delhi after a crocodile head he purchased in Thailand was discovered in his suitcase.