Dhaka: Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) on Sunday seized 874 turtles that were smuggled from India, a media report said.

Acting on information, BGB personnel raided an area along the border with India in Jessore district, 165 km southwest of capital Dhaka, and recovered the turtles in several bags, Xinhua quoted Lieutenant Colonel Jahangir Hossain, commanding officer of the BGB's 26th battalion, as saying.

The turtles belonged to a rare species, Hossain said. They were handed over to the Khulna Animal Resources Department.

Turtles are often seized in the western border of Bangladesh, and they are believed to be smuggled to a third country through the air from Bangladesh.

Earlier, more than one consignment of turtles were seized from Dhaka airport. (IANS)

(Photo: shanghaiist.com)