Sniffer dogs find second pirated-DVD haul

Two Malaysian dogs trained to sniff out DVDs have made their second big discovery of pirated movies, leading investigators to a hidden stash worth more than $430,000, a local newspaper said Sunday.

Lucky and Flo, two black Labradors, sniffed out at least 150,000 discs in a secret compartment in a shop in the capital Saturday after anti-piracy officials, acting on a tip-off, raided the place but failed to find anything, the New Sunday Times said.

“They decided to call in the canine brigade,” it said. “Within minutes, the two Labrador retrievers sniffed out the hidden discs in a room that could only be accessed by the push of a button hidden under a plug outlet.”

Local media say movie pirates have put a bounty on the dogs after the hounds busted a fake DVD ring last month in the southern state of Johor, sniffing out about $3 million worth of movie and game discs in their first major successful operation.

Authorities say they are treating the threat seriously and have beefed up security around Lucky and Flo.

Malaysia, which figures on a U.S. watchlist on piracy, has dramatically stepped up efforts to rein in copyright pirates as it negotiates a free-trade pact with the United States.

The dogs are being trialed by Malaysian domestic-trade officials in a joint effort with the Motion Picture Association, which groups six major Hollywood film companies.