HONG KONG: Hong Kong Customs seized two pieces of suspected scheduled animal skin and about 48 kilograms of suspected European eel, an endangered species, at Hong Kong International Airport yesterday.
Customs officers found the two pieces of suspected scheduled animal skin last evening in the check-in baggage of a male passenger arriving Hong Kong from Shanghai.
Later, Customs officers conducted Customs clearance on a male passenger arriving in Hong Kong from Bilbao, Spain via Paris, France and found about 48kg of suspected European eel in three pieces of his check-in baggage.
Both cases were handed over to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department for follow-up investigation.
Under the Protection of Endangered Species of Animals and Plants Ordinance, any person found guilty of importing an endangered species without a licence is liable to a maximum fine of $5 million and imprisonment for two years.
