‘Cold-blooded’: 4 charged over alleged plot to smuggle AU$1.2 million in Australian reptiles

SYDNEY (AP) — Four people have been charged over an alleged plot to smuggle hundreds of Australian native reptiles from Sydney to Hong Kong. Police said on Monday they have released 257 reptiles, mostly lizards, that had been tightly bound in small containers for export. Police estimate each reptile would sell for an average $3,365 on the black market, making the haul worth more than $808,000. The reptiles were handed to various zoos and wildlife parks to be examined by veterinarians before being released into the wild, police said. Three men and a woman have been arrested at various New South Wales state locations since Dec. 20.