A Mongolian man was arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport on Saturday, as he attempted to smuggle live protected animals out of the country, said Customs spokesperson Phantong Loykulnanta today.

The suspect was about to board a flight to Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, when officials found 46 fish, two Komodo dragons, six Indian star tortoises, six iguanas, five pythons and a boa constrictor inside his luggage, which was to be loaded into the plane’s cargo hold.

They are all protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).The suspect will be charged with a ttempting to export untaxed goods and with the smuggling of protected species, he added.