Vietnamplus

Singaporean authorities on October 4 seized 20 pieces of rhino horns that were being smuggled through Singapore Changi Airport.

Customs officers in the central city of Da Nang have discovered a shipment of 138 kilograms of animal horn and 3.1 tonnes of animal bones suspected to be of rhino and rare and precious wildlife, imported from South Africa at the city’s Tien Sa port.

Police and customs officers in Ho Chi Minh City on December 22 seized more than 90kg of suspected rhino horns at Tan Son Nhat International Airport.

The Hanoi People’s Court on June 1 sentenced Nguyen Van Pho to five years in prison for violating regulations on the protection of endangered, precious and rare animals.

The customs sector handled 1,148 trafficking cases with products valuing 195 billion VND (8.44 million USD) during the period from March 16 to April 15, collecting 42 billion VND for the State budget, said the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

The customs at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City said on March 6 that it has discovered 12 pieces of rhino horn weighing a total 6.2 kg in the luggage of a passenger arriving on a flight from Doha (Qatar).

The Customs Sub-department of Can Tho International Airport has seized 11 suspected rhino horns weighing 28.7kg.

Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh has assigned the Ministries of Public Security, National Defence, Finance, and Industry and Trade to intensify preventive measures and strictly handle the illegal smuggling and transportation of wild animals and plants.

Competent agencies on October 12 seized nearly 34kg of rhino horns at Hanoi-based Noi Bai International Airport.

Malaysian authorities have seized a record amount of 50 rhino horns worth an estimated 12 million USD at Kuala Lumpur International Airport as they were bound for Vietnam.

Customs officers at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City, in cooperation with relevant forces, on July 15 arrested a Vietnamese man who had been on a flight from Angola and illegally transporting 12 rhino horns weighing over seven kilogrammes in total.

Vietnamese customs officials at Noi Bai International Airport on June 1 reported that they found rhino horns and wild animals’ fangs in the luggage of a Vietnamese woman who had been on a flight from Bangkok to Hanoi on May 30.

Wildlife protection has become stricter under policies outlined in amendments to the Penal Code that took effect on January 1, said Lieutenant General, Associate Professor Tran Van Do, former Deputy Chief Justice of the Supreme People’s Court and Chief Justice of the Central Military Court.

Thai police have arrested a Thai Vietnamese for his links with a case of trafficking of 14 rhino horns from South Africa to Thailand in December 2017, local media reported.

Rhino horns weighing nearly 4 kilogrammes with estimated value of nearly 8 billion VND (over 352,000 USD) have been seized at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, the airport’s custom officers said on June 14.

Customs force at Tan Son Nhat International Airport on May 14 said it has detained a Vietnamese national for illegally transporting wildlife products on a flight from Africa to Vietnam.

Rhino horns weighing nearly 1.5 kilogrammes were seized at Tan Son Nhat International Airport on May 8, the airport’s custom officials reported.

Customs officers at the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in HCM City on May 4 discovered over 4kg of products from elephant tusks and pangolin scales illegally transported from Africa to Vietnam.

Police in Hanoi have arrested Nguyen Mau Chien and some others who are alleged members of a trans-boundary wildlife trafficking ring.

Malaysian authorities said on April 10 that they have seized 51.4kg of rhino horns worth 3.1 million USD at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.