NAIROBI: Singapore seized the biggest illegal shipment of ivory and other exotic animal parts in more than a decade today, with the haul from Kenya worth an estimated S$8 million (US$6 million).
The animal parts were discovered stashed among bags of tea leaves in two 20-foot containers while transiting through the island to Vietnam, the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority and Singapore Customs said in a joint statement. They found 1,783 pieces of raw tusks.
Four pieces of rhino horn and 22 teeth believed to be from African big cats
cheetahs and leopards were also found. The haul weighed 3.7 tonnes and is the largest seizure of illegal ivory in Singapore since 2002 when 6 tonnes of ivory were intercepted, the statement said.
