Five frozen tigers have been discovered in a Vietnamese man's freezer with their organs removed, according to official reports on Tuesday. The five tigers were discovered in the central province of Nghe An on Monday, according to a report from the official provincial newspaper.

Tiger organs and bones are used for medicinal purposes in the communist country, where a thriving local market drives the illegal sale of animal parts including ivory and rhino horn. But Vietnam is also a key transit route for wildlife parts destined for elsewhere in Asia , including neighbouring China.

"The authorities found inside a freezer five dead tigers, with the skins intact but the internal organs removed," it said.

The tigers were Indochinese, according to Vietnam News Agency, but officials said police would investigate further.