QUETTA: A Pakistani man smuggling in four falcons was caught at Quetta International Airport Monday.

The man, travelling from Sharjah was stopped by airport officials who discovered falcons among his luggage.

“I noticed a suspicious box so I asked my staff to move it to the side,” said DC of Forest and Wildlife, Niaz Kakar while said.

After opening the large wooden box, the airport officials were surprised to find falcons inside. The market value of these Australian, German, Arab falcons is set at Rs10 million, officials said.

When the man was inquired about the box he replied “there is nothing inside but clothes of regular use”

Tomorrow morning, the high-speed birds will be handed over to the local authorities.

Last year in May, a British national was arrested at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport for attempting to smuggle partridges out of the country. The birds were discovered while checking the luggage of passengers on Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight to Birmingham.

An FIR was lodged against the suspect under wildlife laws and the partridges were handed over to the wildlife officers those will present the suspect before the court on Feb 20th 2018.

In 2016, authorities foiled a bid to smuggle 36 rare partridges from Balochistan into the Punjab. Back in 2013 a Pakistani man tried to smuggle 17 live partridges into Manchester in small wooden crates, claimed UK customs officials. Thirteen birds had died during the flight while the remaining four were sent to a vet.