A 'criminal' parrot has been taken into custody by police in northern Brazil, after it alerted its alleged drug dealer owners to a police raid on their premises.

According to local media reports, the bird had been taught to alert criminals to police by shouting: "Mom, the police!" Law enforcement seized the parrot from a drug den run by a local couple, who live in Vila Irmã Dulce, the capital of Piauí state, The Guardian report.

A police officer involved in the botched operation stated: "He must have been trained for this. As soon as the police got close he started shouting."

[[imagecaption|| Credit: Balanco Geral Manha]]

However, after being captured by the police, the parrot has remained quiet, and Brazilian journalist who saw the incarcerated bird on Tuesday said that it was "super obedient," before adding: "So far it hasn’t made a sound … completely silent."

The footage below allegedly shows the "criminal" parrot moments after being booked into custody:

Local vet Alexandre Clark has confirmed that the parrot had not cooperated with police questioning, stating: "Lots of police officers have come by and he’s said nothing."

This bird isn't the first animal to be implicated in Brazil’s drug trade. Back in 2008, police seized two small alligators during a raid on a favela in western Rio de Janeiro.

Apparently, the gangsters in question had attempted to feed dead bodies of their victims to the lizards, but the father of one of the accused gangsters claims that, although the gang had tried to feed people to them, the alligators had ignored the corpses.

A 'criminal' parrot has been taken into custody by police in northern Brazil, after it alerted its alleged drug dealer owners to a police raid on their premises.

According to local media reports, the bird had been taught to alert criminals to police by shouting: "Mom, the police!" Law enforcement seized the parrot from a drug den run by a local couple, who live in Vila Irmã Dulce, the capital of Piauí state, The Guardian report.

A police officer involved in the botched operation stated: "He must have been trained for this. As soon as the police got close he started shouting."

[[imagecaption|| Credit: Balanco Geral Manha]]

However, after being captured by the police, the parrot has remained quiet, and Brazilian journalist who saw the incarcerated bird on Tuesday said that it was "super obedient," before adding: "So far it hasn’t made a sound … completely silent."

The footage below allegedly shows the "criminal" parrot moments after being booked into custody:

Local vet Alexandre Clark has confirmed that the parrot had not cooperated with police questioning, stating: "Lots of police officers have come by and he’s said nothing."

This bird isn't the first animal to be implicated in Brazil’s drug trade. Back in 2008, police seized two small alligators during a raid on a favela in western Rio de Janeiro.

Apparently, the gangsters in question had attempted to feed dead bodies of their victims to the lizards, but the father of one of the accused gangsters claims that, although the gang had tried to feed people to them, the alligators had ignored the corpses.