53 King Cobras In Car In Vietnam

Vietnamese Police Find Deadly Surprise in Vehicle

On Friday, police in Hanoi discovered several green bags of live king cobra snakes inside a vehicle during a routine traffic stop.

The driver, a 30-year-old Vietnamese man, Nguyen Van Hai, told police that he was paid less than 50 dollars (US) to transport the snakes from Vinh Phuc to the capital.

King cobras are common in areas of Southeast Asia. They are the longest, deadliest snakes in the world. Their venom contains deadly neurotoxins that can kill an adult human within minutes. Although king cobras grow around 13 feet on average, they can grow as much as 18.8-feet.

Hunting and killing the king cobra isn’t allowed in Vietnam, but they are often used in local cooking and traditional healing. Black market transport and sale of the snakes is a problem for Vietnamese officials.

A local officer, Dang Van Hanh, spoke with the media about the incident. He reassured them that the snakes were immediately taken to a nearby wildlife rescue center and officials plan to return them to a protected natural environment.

Nguyen Van Hai has claimed that he didn’t realize a permit is required to transport the snakes via vehicle across regions.

On The Web:

53 King Cobras In Car: Vietnamese Police Seize 53 Snakes From Suspect’s Car
http://s3.ibtimes.com/53-king-cobras-car-vietnamese-police-seize-53-snakes-suspects-car-1207973

Police in Vietnam seize 53 king cobras from car in the capital
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/police-in-vietnam-seize-53-king-cobras-from-car-in-the-capital/2013/04/22/bfeb8abc-ab37-11e2-9493-2ff3bf26c4b4_story.html

Man busted with 53 king cobras in car
http://blog.chron.com/hottopics/2013/04/man-busted-with-53-king-cobras-in-car/

King Cobras Arrest: Vietnam Police Bust Man With 53 Venomous Cobras In Car
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/22/king-cobra-arrest-vietnam-53_n_3131017.html