Tigers, jaguars, bison found in raid on fuel smugglers near U.S. border

Mexican authorities said Thursday that they had rescued Bengal tigers, mandrills, hyenas and even a camel during raids on a fuel smuggling ring in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, on the U.S. border. The 135 animals found at a ranch also included lions, buffalo, sulcata tortoises, spider monkeys, jaguars, an American bison and a green macaw. Thirty-five of the animals, including the green macaw and sulcata tortoise, are classified as endangered species.Mexican authorities regularly rescue exotic animals from properties owned by wealthy drug traffickers. Some Mexican drug cartels are known to house exotic cats as symbols of power and, occasionally, to dispose of their enemies. According to a 2023 U.S. indictment, some victims of a Sinaloa cartel faction were "fed dead or alive to tigers." On this occasion, however, the military found them during an operation targeting fuel smugglers. Mexican authorities said Thursday that they had rescued over 130 exotic animals during raids on a fuel smuggling ring in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, on the U.S. border. Mexico Government Smuggling gasoline and diesel from the United States into Mexico and reselling it tax-free is a huge m...