Overview
- On August 10, security screening at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport led to Sheehan’s arrest when officers discovered three ball pythons concealed in a mesh bag inside his underwear.
- The seized pythons (Python regius) are listed under CITES and transporting them without permits breaches Thai conservation and customs regulations.
- Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Royal Thai Police and the Wildlife Enforcement Network coordinated the operation after surveillance triggered by reports of missing pythons from a protected area.
- Sheehan, who was previously detained in Colombo in 2024 on similar wildlife-trafficking charges, remains in formal custody as investigators seek any international collaborators.
- Following the seizure, global conservation associations issued alerts across Asia and pursued legal measures while Thai authorities expand their probe into the trafficking network.