/ 22 June 2009

Live alligator found in bag on train in Norway

Norwegian customs officials carrying out a routine check were shocked to find a live alligator in luggage on board a train bound for Oslo, officials said on Monday.

The 75-centimetre caiman reptile, which is on the list of endangered species, was found during a routine baggage control on Sunday on a train travelling from the Swedish city of Gothenburg to Oslo, Norwegian customs inspector Wenche Fredriksen told AFP.

“It was in a ventilation tube inside a bag,” she said.

The reptile’s owner, a 22-year-old man, said he bought the “pet” in Poland where he was a student and wanted to bring it home to Norway.

The caiman was turned over to veterinary authorities who were to decide its fate. — AFP