Chinese hair salon owner jailed for 6½ years for smuggling ivory into China
A single mother who bought six pieces of ivory in West Africa and smuggled them back to China has been jailed for 6½ years, state media reported.
The woman, 37, was stopped at Beijing Capital International Airport in December 2013 and the ivory, weighing 14.5kg and worth more than 605,000 yuan (HK$735,000) was found in her luggage, state radio reported.
Smuggling endangered animals or animal products can lead to a 10-year jail term, or even a life sentence, for serious offences in China.
The woman, whose full name was not given in the report, told a court in Beijing she bought the ivory as souvenirs.
She said she had gone to Ivory Coast five times and had only bought ivory on one trip.
Prosecutors said she had spent 20,000 yuan on an air ticket, but stayed in the African nation for only one day and a night when she bought the ivory.
