Man In Prickly Situation After ICA Seizes Smuggled Hedgehogs At Woodlands Checkpoint

Hedgehogs are super cute.

And these gifs will show you how cute they are:

Starting with this one-

And my personal favourite:

Cuteness overload.

They are so cute that a guy was caught smuggling them into Singapore.

Man Caught For Smuggling Hedgehogs Into Singapore 

Two hedgehogs were wrapped in camouflage netting and hidden in the spare tyre compartment of a vehicle.

In 2018, a man also attempted to smuggle 12 puppies by hiding them in the spare tyre compartment.

The 42-year-old Singaporean man was referred to the National Parks Board for further investigation, according to ICA’s Facebook post on Tuesday.

Hedgehogs As Pets In Singapore 

ICA also mentioned that animals like hedgehogs are not suitable as pets as they may transmit zoonotic diseases to humans.

They can also be a public safety risk if they escape or if they are mishandled.

Hedgehogs are non-native animals that can threaten the local biodiversity in the wild.

Penalties For Smuggling Illegal Animals 

It is an offence to import animals or birds into Singapore without a licence, according to Straits Times.

If found guilty of smuggling animals, one can be fined up to $10,000, jailed up to one year, or both.

The method used to conceal the hedgehogs was a cause of concern because similar methods could be used by people to smuggle prohibited items into Singapore.

The hedgehogs are now under the care of Wildlife Reserves Singapore.

Other Attempts of Smuggling Animals 

Earlier in August, a total of 15 containers of 815 birds were uncovered from the modified compartments above bus rear tyres.

And on 9 Feb 2018, a Greek tortoise was kept in a plastic container in the car jack compartment of a Singapore registered vehicle.

Multiple animal smuggling attempts have shone the spotlight on the underground trade industry. Welfare groups fear that more may be getting past checkpoints.

With all that said, I hope that none of you are taking the cute animals you see overseas back home as pets. But if you do, make sure you have a licence for importing animals and do check that the animal you are bringing over is legal!