Customs officials intercepted three different express air packages containing 10 pieces cut from two whole rhino horns at Hong Kong International Airport on Monday.
The package came from Pemba, Mozambique, via Johannesburg, South Africa. The slabs weighed 6.71 kilos and are worth about HKD1.34 million.
The pieces, declared as “wood samples”, were spread out over three packages and wrapped in aluminium foil and plastic sheets.
The case was handed over to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department for further inspection.
In Hong Kong, trading in endangered species for commercial purposes can be punished by a maximum fine of HKD5 million and two years’ imprisonment.
Three out of the five existing rhinoceros species are listed as critically endangered. Rhinos are threatened by the illegal trade in their horns, which are used for ornaments or for eastern traditional medicine, particularly in Vietnam. By weight, rhino horn can cost more than gold on the black market.
(Photo: Laurel Chor)
On Monday, a northern white rhino named Nabire died from natural causes at the zoo where she lived in the Czech Republic – leaving behind the last four members of her subspecies in the whole world.
In Kenya, where three of those four rhinos live, armed guards stand by the animals’ side around the clock to stop any potential poachers.
