China confiscates 12 tonnes of endangered pangolin scales in the country’s biggest seizure
The latest stockpile of scales was likely taken from between 20,000 to 30,000 slaughtered pangolins
Nearly 12 tonnes of smuggled pangolin scales have been confiscated by Chinese officials -- the country’s largest-ever seizure of the endangered mammal’s prized parts as it seeks to curb illegal trafficking.
The pangolin, whose brown scales have earned it the nickname “scaly anteater”, is the most hunted animal in the world, with one million estimated to have been plucked from Asian and African forests over the past decade.
The latest stockpile of scales was seized at a port in the southern city of Shenzhen this July and likely taken from between 20,000 to 30,000 slaughtered pangolins, Xinhua reported.
At a press conference Wednesday, Li Ping, a Shenzhen customs official, said customs found 239 bags of suspected pangolin scales hidden in a container at Yantian port on July 1.
Police have arrested two suspects, surnamed Li and He, who used fake names to register their packages for import, state-run media said.
The suspects declared the packages empty, but were using charcoal-stuffed bags to cover nearly 250 sacks of pangolin scales.