A tourist was arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle live animals through an airport in Thailand.

Taiwanese traveller Chiu Kuo-Shu, 54, was caught with the protected wildlife at the Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok in the early hours of October 7.

He was preparing to board Thai AirAsia flight FD 234 to Kaohsiung, Taiwan, when security staff reportedly noticed suspicious lumps under his clothes during X-ray scans.

They pulled him aside to be frisked and found pouches of live animals strapped to his body.

Officials seized eight animals stuffed in white bags, including two slow lorises, one squirrel, three otters, and two spiny turtles. They also confiscated the white mesh bags and a black stocking used to conceal the creatures.

Chiu was detained and handed over to Thailand's Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression Division for further questioning.

He faces multiple charges, including unauthorised possession and attempted export of protected wildlife, attempted export of banned goods, and violating the Animal Epidemics Act.

The rescued animals were handed to the Wildlife Conservation Office for examination and care.

Thailand is a key hub for wildlife smuggling due to its strategic location, with porous borders into other Southeast Asian countries.