Man held with rare birds strapped to his socks

THERE are two types of budgie smugglers - both an arresting sight.
One is the famously tight pair of trunks worn by Daniel Craig as 007. The other, however, is far less easy to spot.
The latter was caught by inspectors at a US airport after concealing more than a dozen rare songbirds under his trousers. Sony Dong, 46, was arrested after an inspector spotted bird feathers and droppings on his socks and tail feathers peeking out from under his trousers.
He had designed a custom pair of leggings to hide the rare songbirds on a flight from Vietnam to Los Angeles.
'He had fashioned these special cloth devices to hold the birds, said Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for US prosecutors. 'They were secured by cloth wrappings and attached to his calves with buttons.
Hidden in the leggings were three red-whiskered bul-buls, four magpie robins and six shama thrush.
The songbirds sell for up to 25 in Vietnam but are sold to collectors in the US for about 270.
Investigators later linked Dongs scheme to another man, Duc Le. He was arrested after authorities searched his home in Orange County, California, and found 51 songbirds in an outdoor aviary.
Both were charged with eight counts of conspiracy.
Inspectors decided to search Dong because he had abandoned a suitcase containing 18 birds at the airport in December. Five of the birds died during the journey.
Dong returned to Vietnam in February for more birds and returned a month later with them hidden under his trousers.
The birds are in quarantine and could be given to a zoo if they are not carrying any diseases such as avian flu. DM