Wildlife Crime Case Study

Officers found the West African dwarf crocodiles – which are capable of tearing limbs off a human – cramped in a makeshift tank when visiting the house on an unrelated matter. The largest of the female reptiles, which measured more than 1m (4ft), was in such bad condition it died soon after being rescued. It is believed the owner, who did not have a licence to keep the protected animals at his house in Croydon, bought them in Britain but it is not known how they were smuggled into the country. The remaining crocodiles were transferred to a quarantine facility at the Heathrow Animal Reception Centre.