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Image
source: The Namibian (on Twitter)
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South African police
Thursday said they had arrested a Hong Kong-bound Chinese man found with 18
rhino horns hidden in his luggage.
AFP
report continues:
He
was detained on Wednesday at Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport
after an anonymous tip-off.
"The
28-year-old male, who was in transit from Namibia to board a South African
Airways flight to Hong Kong, was immediately arrested," the organized
crime police unit said in a statement.
The
horns, weighing 43 kilograms (95 pounds), were valued at around 6.6 million
rand (US$467,000, €441,000).
He
is due to appear in court on Friday.
Southern
African countries are battling increased poaching levels. The trade is fuelled
by organized syndicates mainly from Asian countries.
South
Africa, which has the largest rhino population worldwide, has been hit the
hardest, with 1,200 slaughtered last year alone.
Most
of them were killed at the Kruger National Park, the country's premier safari
destination.
The
illegal trade is driven by huge demand in Vietnam and China, where it is
believed to have medicinal powers curing everything from hangovers to cancer.
The
belief has been scientifically proven to be false.
The
horn is also crafted into prized ornaments.
In August, another Hong Kong-bound Chinese man was arrested at OR Tambo airport with 10 rhino horns and carved ornaments.
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