russian national accused of smuggling a orangutan in drugged state

A 24 year old Russian National's attempt to smuggle a 2 year old Orangutan to Russia was thwarted by Quarantine officials at Ngurah Rai International Airport. 

Dewa Delanata, head of the airport’s quarantine office stated that orangutan was drugged and hidden in a basket. "The Russian deliberately used an inhumane method to take the orangutan to Russia," the official said on Saturday.  The Russian National who has been identified as ZA was taken into custody when the quarantine and airport security officer found the animal at international departure side around 10:30 pm. Dewa said that initially they mistook it for a monkey and were afraid to open the basket as monkeys are generally aggressive and it might create havoc in the departure area.

They took the basket to another room for detailed examination. "When it was taken to the examination room and we opened it, we were shocked to find an orangutan," he said. Russian National Za claims that he bought this animal for $3000. The drug caused orangutan to be knocked out for two to three hours.

"The Russian also had injections and drugs in his bag. He said he planned to re-administer the drugs when they transited in Korea," Dewa added. 

Upon further investigation and search, two geckos and five lizards were also obtained from the suitcase of Russian national. The case has been escalated to airport police for further investigation and formalities. Orangutan has been handed in the care of Bali Natural Resources Conservation Agency for the treatment.