It was ready to leave from Cagliari airport , destination Paris Orly , with 8 pieces of stalagmites of various sizes, shells and sea pebbles taken from Sardinian caves and beaches .
The passenger , of French origin, was however discovered by customs office officials on duty in Elmas, during a joint operation with the Guardia di Finanza soldiers .
The woman declared that she had detached the stalagmites from the flooring of the Su Mannau cave in Fluminimaggiore , an area which is also part of a large karst complex created in the Cambrian period and protected according to the regional law of 7 August 2007.
The 4 shells and 66 sea pebbles found in the luggage had instead been removed from the beaches of Su Giudeu a Chia and Tuerredda respectively , in violation of Sardinia Regional Law no. 16 of 28 July 2017 which expressly prohibits the removal and detention of even small quantities of sand, pebbles, stones or shells coming from the coast or the sea in the absence of regular authorization or concession issued by the competent authorities. For this type of crime, an administrative fine of up to 3 thousand euros is foreseen. The administrative seizure of what was illegally removed was also ordered. The tourist will then have to answer for her conduct to the judicial authority for the crime of "destruction or deterioration of habitat within a protected site".
Another French tourist ready to embark for Paris with 118 shells taken from the Poetto beach in Cagliari was also arrested for the same type of crime . She too was seized with an attached administrative sanction.
The anomalous contents of the baggage were also verified thanks to the fruitful collaboration of the SOGAER Security airport security check staff.
(Unioneonline/vl)
