Man Tries to Smuggle Baby Orangutan

A Russian man, Andrei Zhestkov allegedly tried to smuggle a drugged baby Orangutan from Indonesia in a suitcase. He was arrested on Friday at Bali's Ngurah Airport. Authorities found the orangutan, two geckos and four chameleons inside a small rattan basket in one of Zhestkov's suitcases.

Police Chief Sr. Comr. Ruddi Setiawan said the suspect had revealed that he taken the baby orangutan from Java to Bali. He said investigations were continuing as to where he got the orangutan. Dewa Delanata, head of the airport's quarantine office said Zhestkov was accused of deliberately using an inhumane method to allegedly smuggle the two-year-old orangutan. "At first, we thought it was a monkey. The officers were afraid to open the basket as they the monkey would be aggressive and run loose in the departure area."

Orangutans only exist on two islands - Sumatra and Borneo. This creature is at the brink of extinction because of habitat loss and illegal logging.