Two men were arrested by police for trafficking wild animals in Putuo District, east China's Shanghai Municipality.

They were accused of selling reptiles including 16 ball pythons, two red-tailed boas and one veiled chameleon.

One man admitted that he purchased the veiled chameleon, which was a protected animal, via the internet in 2017. Later, he also purchased several ball pythons to breed snakes for sale.

According to an expert, the animals were not from China. As the species are protected by CITES, they will receive second-class state protection in China.

The pythons and boas were sent to the Shanghai Zoo by the police.

(Cover image is a screenshot.)

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