Autor: reaev

According to court papers, the scheme was discovered in November 2006 when authorities found several African elephant tusks in a shipment labeled as toys. Federal agents tracked the shipment to Chau’s business, where dozens of ivory pieces were later found.

By Staff,  City News Service
Monday, November 29, 2010

The owner of a Claremont doughnut shop was put on probation today for two years and ordered to pay a $3,800 fine for his part in a scheme to buy, sell and smuggle ivory from endangered African elephants into the United States.

Moun Chau, 51, of Montclair, pleaded guilty in April to one federal count of conspiracy, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

According to court papers, the scheme was discovered in November 2006 when authorities found several African elephant tusks in a shipment labeled as toys.

Federal agents tracked the shipment to Chau’s business, where dozens of ivory pieces were later found, prosecutors said.

With limited exceptions, the U.S. prohibits the importation of any amount of ivory.

In his guilty plea, Chau acknowledged buying ivory that was offered for sale on eBay from an accomplice who obtained the African elephant ivory in  Thailand and offered it for sale on eBay.

Some of the ivory came from African elephants, the largest mammal that lives on land, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

African elephants are endangered, partly due to loss of habitat and poaching of the animals, which are killed chiefly for their tusks.

Chau was charged last January with violating the Endangered Species Act and an international treaty called the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

Both the U.S. and Thailand are signatories to the treaty, which prohibits the importation of any species threatened with extinction unless the U.S. has issued an importation permit and there is a foreign export permit from the country where the specimen originated.

Global wildlife smuggling generates at least $5 billion and may exceed $20 billion annually, according to a report prepared for Congress.

ALL 59 communal conservancies have been given N$60 000 each by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism as compensation for losses caused by wild animals.

The ministry channelled the funds, N$3,5 million in total, through its Game Product Trust Fund.

This was announced by Environment and Tourism Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah at the end of a two-day meeting of conservancy chairpersons and their managers last Friday.

There has been a number of complains from conservancies about wild animals such as lions and elephants killing livestock and people and destroying crops.

Nandi-Ndaitwah said the ministry had made N$1,9 million available to settle 2 295 claims for incidents that occurred outside conservancies.

"The implementation of the scheme should commence on December 1," she said.

Nandi-Ndaitwah reminded conservancies that the National Policy on Human Wildlife Conflict Management requires each conservancy to have a committee to recommend and approve compensation payments to their members.

These committees must be formed by representatives from the ministry, regional councils, NGOs, the conservancy committee and the local traditional authority.

Conservancies‘ financial records will be checked by the ministry on a quarterly basis. Should a conservancy misuse its allocated funds, no further allocation will be made until the case has been resolved to the satisfaction of the ministry.

The minister said there are a number of ways to address human-wildlife conflicts, such as building stone walls around water points and the use of ‚chilli pepper bombs‘ to deter elephants.

She said it was recently discovered that vuvuzelas can also be used for scaring away elephants.