A man has been arrested in JFK for allegedly smuggling 34 live birds hidden in plastic hair curlers.
Bizarre on Female First
The unknown man tried to illegal transport the nearly three dozen live finches from Guyana through JFK Airport and use them for lucrative bird-singing competitions in Brooklyn and Queens, which can fetch up to £2,400 each, according to federal officials.
Special Agent Gabriel Harper, of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, who assisted in the Gurahoo investigation, wrote in the complaint: ''Individuals keep finches to enter them in singing contests in Brooklyn and Queens.
''In such contests, often conducted in public areas like parks, two finches sing and a judge selects the bird determined to have the best voice.
''A finch who wins these competitions becomes valuable and can sell in excess of $5,000.''