Customs officers at Alataw Pass, in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, recently detained eight suspects in connection with smuggling 428 kilograms of antelope horns into China.
Local customs sources said that this was the biggest endangered animal products smuggling attempt ever uncovered by Alataw Pass Customs officers.
Initial investigations show that these antelope horns were smuggled into China by two Kazakhstan nationals.
Antelopes are listed as a first-class endangered species under the international convention on protection of wild animals.
China has ratified the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species and bans trade of wildlife products.
Further investigations into the case are continuing.
(Xinhua 03/30/2001)
