Thai officials detained a 36-year-old Vietnamese man at Bangkok's main airport after X-ray scans revealed six pieces of rhino horn — more than 11 kg in total — hidden inside about 12 kg of wrapped meat in a polystyrene icebox. The suspect was transiting from Lubumbashi (Democratic Republic of Congo) to Laos via Ethiopia and Thailand and is linked to an international trafficking network. The seized items have been sent to a wildlife forensic lab; if convicted he faces up to 10 years in prison and a one million baht fine.
Bangkok Airport Arrest: Over 11 kg Of Rhino Horns Found Hidden Inside Wrapped Meat
This handout photo taken on February 9, 2026 and released on February 10, 2026 by Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) shows rhino horns confiscated by customs from a Vietnamese traveler at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok. Thai authorities have arrested a man for allegedly smuggling more than 11 kilograms of rhino horns inside wrapped meat, in a case officials on February 10, linked to an international wildlife trafficking network. (Handout)(Handout/NATIONAL PARK, WILDLIFE AND PLANT CONSERVATION DEPARTMENT (DNP)/AFP)
Thai authorities have arrested a 36-year-old Vietnamese national at Bangkok's main international airport after X-ray checks revealed irregularities in his checked luggage. Officers discovered six pieces of rhinoceros horn weighing more than 11 kilograms, concealed inside roughly 12 kilograms of wrapped meat packed in a polystyrene icebox.
Seizure And Investigation
The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation said the suspect arrived from Lubumbashi in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and was transiting to Laos with stopovers in Ethiopia and Thailand. Sadudee Panpakdee, director of the department's CITES division, told AFP that officials did not yet know the market value of the horns or the type of meat used to hide them. All items have been forwarded to a wildlife forensic laboratory for testing and identification.
"There were some irregularities in the X-ray scan of the checked luggage so the authorities checked it," the department said.
Legal Consequences And Context
If convicted, the suspect faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to one million baht (about US$32,000). All five rhino species are protected under international law, and trade in their horns is banned. Thailand is frequently used as a transit hub by wildlife traffickers who supply a lucrative black market across Asia.
Officials said the arrest appears connected to an international wildlife trafficking network; forensic results may reveal the horns' species, origin and help identify broader trafficking links.
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