The Department of Environmental Affairs has on Wednesday welcomed the confiscation of rhino horn valued at an estimated R29 million by Hong Kong customs officials.
Department spokesperson Albi Modise said the 82.5 kilogrammes of rhino horn had allegedly been smuggled from South Africa in a shipment marked as vehicle parts and was destined for Malaysia when it was intercepted by the Hong Kong customs authorities at the Hong Kong International Airport, following a tip-off.
The rhino horn was discovered when the shipment was X-rayed.
Hong Kong customs have indicated that this is the single largest haul of endangered species products in five years. No arrests have yet been made.
Modise says even though they welcome to find, it remains a concern that these consignments are not being detected and seized before they leave South Africa and a review of the measures in place to make such detections is urgently required in order to continue to adapt to the shifts in the modus operandi of the syndicates involved in this transnational crime.
DNA samples of the horns will be brought to South Africa to determine whether they are linked to an ongoing, or unsolved, poaching investigations.
Members of the public wishing to report rhino poaching and environmental crimes can contact the Department’s hotline on 0800 205 005 or call police on 10111.
- African News Agency (ANA)
