WILD LIFE SMUGGLING.

Wild Life smuggling. The Punishment is too Soft. Man Caught at Air Port with 44 Lizards in his Pants. In New Zealand. A German traveller stuffed 44 small lizards into his underwear before trying to board a flight has been sentenced to prison for plundering the country's protected species. He will spend 14 weeks behind bars and must pay a 5,000 New Zealand dollar ($3,040) fine before being deported to Germany as soon as he is released. He was caught by wildlife officials at Christchurch International Airport on South Island in December, about to board an overseas flight with 44 geckos and skinks in a hand-sewn package concealed in his underwear He admitted trading in exploited species without a permit and hunting absolutely protected wildlife without authority, pleading guilty to two charges under the Wildlife Act and five under the Trade in Endangered Species Act. He could have faced maximum penalty of NZ$500,000 ($355,000) and six years in prison. The geckos may have been worth 2,000 euros ($2,800) each on the European market. He had also been to New Zealand in 2001, 2004, 2008, and 2009. In 2008, he had been with a Swiss reptile dealer.