MADRID, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Spanish Civil Guards on Wednesday confirmed they have made three arrests in an operation against "one of the biggest organizations dedicated to trafficking threatened species of turtles".
As well as the three arrests, agents recovered 1,100 turtles from 62 different species, 14 of which are considered to be in serious danger of extinction, and over 750 eggs.
The operation saw them dismantle "the biggest illegal breeding center for turtles in Europe", which was on the island of Mallorca, Spanish Civil Guards said in a statement.
Among the species discovered are turtles endemic in Mexico, the United States and Canada and "protected by the legislation of those countries".
Two German nationals were arrested on Mallorca and further two are currently under investigation, while a Spaniard was also detained in Barcelona.
Those arrested face charges of smuggling protected species, crimes against flora and fauna and money laundering.
The operation which led to the discovery is named "Coahuila" and was launched in February 2017 after Civil Guards at the Son Sant Joan airport at Mallorca discovered shipments of the "coahuila" species of box turtle.
The subsequent investigations led to the discovery of the breeding center hidden on a farm near the town of Llucmajor, where breeding of land and water based turtles was being carried out "on an industrial scale" in poor conditions.
The Civil Guard highlight that illegal animal trafficking is one of the main threats to the conservation of biodiversity.
