Hong
Kong authorities confiscated $3.4 million ($26.7 million in Hong Kong currency)
worth of ivory found in two shipping containers this week.
The illegal goods weighed more than
8,000 pounds, making it one of the biggest seizures of ivory in Hong Kong.
The containers arrived from Tanzania and
Kenya, according to Hong Kong customs officials. The agency seized a total of
1,209 pieces of ivory tusks and three pounds of ivory ornaments from the two
containers.
iHong Kong
Customs was on alert after a tip-off from Guangdong officials in China. On
October 16, Hong Kong officers inspected a container from Tanzania claiming to
carry plastic scrap and found $1.7 million worth of ivory. A day later, a
second container from Kenya was seized with ivory valued at $1.7 million,
according to Hong Kong Customs.
Seven people, including one Hong Kong
resident, have been arrested by Chinese authorities in connection to the cases,
said a customs spokeswoman.
Hong Kong is viewed as a transit point for the illegal ivory trade, feeding
into increasing demands in China, according to a Time article published this week.
Elephants are being killed in Africa at an alarming rate
as international demand soars for ivory. Much of the demand comes from increasingly
affluent Asian countries, particularly China and Thailand.
The last major bust in Hong Kong
occurred in 2011, when officials seized a shipment of ivory and rhino horns
valued at $2.2 million in Hong Kong dollars. Priest embroiled in ivory smuggling controversy. Will elephants still roam earth in 20 years? SOURCE: CNN-HONG KONG
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