A sting operation like none other took place this week as global police and customs officials cracked down on the biggest wildlife trafficking ring the world has ever seen. The giant environmental crime operation involved 109 countries and resulted in nearly 2,000 seizures of protected wildlife, including 440 ivory pieces, more than 4,300 birds, and nearly 10,000 live turtles and tortoises, according to Interpol. Just in the month of June, officials seized 23 live primates, 30 big cats, more than a ton of pangolin scales, 74 truckloads of timber, more than 2,600 plants, and nearly 10,000 marine species. 

The effort, coordinated by Interpol and the World Customs Organization (WCO), identified nearly 600 suspects and spurred arrests around the world. The illegal wildlife trade is a multibillion-dollar criminal enterprise. It’s the primary threat to the survival of numerous species, including African elephants, which are targeted for their ivory; pangolins, which are targeted for use in traditional Chinese medicine, and many species of birds and reptiles, which enter the exotic pet trade. 

Wildlife crime has spiked in recent years, which is why Interpol and the WCO decided to join forces and stop the attack on precious wildlife. Officials hope the scale of this operation and the new collaboration between Interpol and the WCO, two of the largest enforcement organizations in the world, will set a precedent for working together in the future.