LEOPARD SKULL FOUND IN SUITCASE RAISES CONCERNS AT GERMAN AIRPORT

 HANOVER, Feb 6 (Bernama-dpa) -- Customs officials at Hanover airport in Germany got more than they bargained for when they took a closer look at a suitcase brought in to the country by a traveller from Namibia.

Along with cigarettes, there was also a quantity of fresh meat and an animal skull, the German Press Agency (dpa) reported.

During the inspection on January 25 the traveller initially said it was from a monkey, according to a statement released by the main customs office in Hanover on Friday.

However, it was actually a leopard skull. The man said that he had bought it as a "souvenir" at a market for the equivalent of US$90.

Leopards — and all their body parts — are protected by the Washington Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. They may only be imported with the appropriate authorisation, which the man was unable to produce.

The customs officials handed the case over to the responsible Federal Agency for Nature Conservation.

"The man had correctly declared the cigarettes he had brought with him, but the processing of the animal skull had required significantly more work and research," said Joline Kassner, spokeswoman for the main customs office.

The meat in the suitcase did not have the necessary import documents and was promptly confiscated and destroyed, in line with usual procedures, the spokeswoman said.

The man was able to take home the fur of an antelope, which was also found in the suitcase, after an inspection.

-- BERNAMA-DPA