The Vietnamese Coast Guard and Customs seized 500 kilograms of ivory in the northern city of Haiphong after it was smuggled into the country by a local company, VnExpress reported on February 5.
Ivory mixed with a cargo of cow horns was imported from Nigeria to the port of Lah Huyen in Hai Phong.
A customs officer in Haiphong said that when customs officers checked the cow’s horn, they found abnormal signs. As a result, they used special tools to further check the cargo and discovered the hidden ivory.
Maj. Gen. Vu Trung Kien, deputy commander of the Vietnam Coast Guard, said there have been signs of organized trade and smuggling of ivory from Nigeria to Vietnam since mid-October last year, and the Coast Guard has since tightened its controls. .
The Coast Guard and police continue to investigate.
Vietnam banned the ivory trade in 1992, but the country remains the main market for the product, which is valued for decorative and medicinal purposes, according to conservation groups.
According to a December 2017 study by the wildlife trade monitoring group TRAFFIC and the Australian University of Adelaide, Vietnam is among the top ten countries and territories in terms of wildlife trade.
Also on the list are mainland China, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand, Laos and Indonesia.
Source: Rossa Primavera
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.