Thai customs seizes illegal ivory shipment
17:25, 6 January 2011
BANGKOK. January 6. KAZINFORM A large shipment of illicit ivory which was smuggled from Mozambique was seized by the Thai customs in pallets labeled as personal use property, director of the Customs Department unveiled Thursday. Kazinform refers to Xinhua.
Director-General of the Customs Department Utid Tamwatin said the 435 kg of elephant tusks were packed in two pallets en route for Laos and officials acting on a tip-off seized them on Wednesday.
According to the Director-General, 73 pieces of the ivory was worth approximately 10 million baht (331,000 U.S. dollars).
The import of elephant tusk is prohibited under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) as well as Thailand's Wildlife Preservation and Protection Act B.E. 2535. Kazinform cites Xinhua. See www.xinhuanet.com