• The eight known species of pangolin are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

• Pangolins are considered one of the groups of species most at risk of extinction.

• The CITES Convention on Trade in Endangered Species prohibits international trafficking of pangolins, except in exceptional and duly authorized cases.

• In the Spanish Penal Code, the mere possession of an animal specimen protected by CITES agreements is considered a crime.

September 20, 2024.- The Tax Agency and the Tax Guard of the Civil Guard at Valencia Airport have found a dead specimen of African pangolin ('Manis sp.') inside a suitcase owned by a passenger from Equatorial Guinea who, following the usual procedure for controlling passengers, was required by Customs to pass his luggage through the suitcase scanner installed in the arrivals area of the airport

Once at the scanner, the agent operating it was able to observe the image of the animal inside a suitcase, so the traveler was asked to open the luggage, confirming in the physical inspection the existence of the animal previously detected with the non-intrusive inspection equipment.

Following the discovery of the specimen, the passenger was identified and the animal's carcass was removed from the suitcase, initiating steps to determine the species seized.

Confirmation was quickly obtained that the specimen belongs to the pangolin genus, which in all its variants is protected at the highest level.

The passenger did not carry any required documentation that would allow him to possess and transport the protected specimen. As a result, the Tax Agency and the Fiscal Guard of the Civil Guard began the investigation of the corresponding report for alleged crime against protected fauna.

Once the police report was drawn up, the corresponding complaint was filed in the Quart courts, where the appropriate judicial procedure will be followed.

Illegal trade in an endangered species

The pangolin is considered the most illegally trafficked mammal on the planet. Despite its status as an endangered species, its keratin scales, used in traditional medicine in some Asian countries, are worth a lot on the illegal market, and can exceed 700 euros per kilo.

The mere possession of these animals without the required permits is considered a crime in Spain, as it violates international laws such as the CITES Convention on trade in endangered species, which includes the pangolin among the species classified as vulnerable or in danger of extinction.

The CITES Convention prohibits international trafficking of pangolins, except in exceptional and duly authorized cases, such as scientific research, and always through the granting of an import permit and an export permit (or re-export certificate).

According to independent studies, more than 2.7 million pangolins have been hunted in a single year in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo, and in 2019, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, seizures of pangolin scales and meat reached an all-time high of 128 tonnes worldwide.