Two travelers convicted in Hong Kong for smuggling worked ivory

Two travelers who smuggled worked ivory were convicted at a court in China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Monday.

The two men, aged 53 and 54, were convicted for violating the Protection of Endangered Species of Animals and Plants Ordinance (Ordinance) at the West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts.

A spokesman of the HKSAR government's Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) said that about 60 kg of worked ivory were found concealed inside the luggage of the two men, who were arriving from Harare, Zimbabwe, via Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, by Customs officers on Saturday.

Subsequent to follow-up investigations, the AFCD charged the men with illegal import of specimens of listed species in Appendix I to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

They were each sentenced to imprisonment for two months.

Elephants are listed in Appendix I to the CITES and regulated under the Ordinance in Hong Kong.

Any person importing, exporting or re-exporting specimens of endangered species not in accordance with the Ordinance will be liable to a maximum fine of 5 million Hong Kong dollars (640,000 U.S. dollars) and imprisonment for two years.

The specimens will also be forfeited upon conviction, according to the AFCD.