Pangolin and porcupine seized in illegal bushmeat raid in London

A man has been arrested after police found 38kg of illegal frozen bushmeat in a London building.

Animals, including pangolins, cane rats and porcupines, were found inside the freezer, the food safety watchdog said.

Officers from the Food Standards Agency and the Metropolitan police found the bushmeat at a site in Deptford, south east London, on December 5.

Bushmeat is from wild animals – often species found in tropical regions – that have been hunted.

A 57-year-old man was arrested and released under investigation, the FSA said, after an operation targeted illegally imported meat products which posed potential food safety risks to consumers.

Illegally imported meat bypasses safety and hygiene checks required for food sold in the UK and could carry diseases and contaminants that put consumers at risk, it added.

Some species, such as pangolins, are also critically endangered and all commercial trade of them is prohibited internationally.

Simon Ashwin, senior investigator at the FSA’s National Food Crime Unit, said: ‘This operation forms part of the NFCU’s ongoing work to disrupt the illegal meat trade and prevent unsafe products from reaching the public.

‘The FSA advises consumers not to buy or eat illegally imported meat, including bushmeat, as it may pose serious health risks.

‘If you have concerns about products being sold, contact your local authority. We remain vigilant to the threat of illegal meat entering the food chain and will continue to take action to protect the public.’

What makes bushmeat so dangerous?

Meat carried by animals smuggled for human consumption can carry deadly diseases, which can be passed onto humans.

These range from Ebola, HIV and Mpox to other parasites and deadly pathogens.

Bats, monkeys, snakes, antelopes, elephants and giraffes are common sources of bushmeat, according to the CDC, but even after smoking, drying or salting the meat, deadly pathogens can remain.

Many see bushmeat as a ‘delicacy’, which spurs the illegal trade of the animals for human consumption.

Researchers estimate that over five tonnes of wild animal meat is smuggled into Europe weekly through Paris Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport in France alone, according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

MORE: First picture Liverpool fan, 15, stabbed to death near a school in north London

MORE: Celebrate baby’s first Christmas with these 16 perfect gift picks

MORE: Mother ‘left one-year-old son to die in hot car while she got lip filler’, court told