Customs task force busts ivory smugglers

Customs officers from South China's Guangdong province and the Hong Kong special administrative region have seized 10 African ivory pieces weighing a total of 323.7 kilograms, after cracking down on a major smuggling case in a joint operation.

Meanwhile 17 suspects, including six Hong Kong residents, were detained for further investigation according to Ma Dongsheng, a senior customs officer with the Anti-Smuggling Bureau at Shenzhen Customs.

"A major smuggling channel active in smuggling African ivories to the mainland has been destroyed following a major smuggling gang being busted during the operation," Ma said at a press conference on Thursday.

Led by the General Administration of Customs, a special task force was set up to start further investigations when customs officers in Zhanjiang in Leizhou peninsula seized smuggled ivory in a special operation late last year.

A smuggling gang, including members from both the mainland and Hong Kong, were suspected to be smuggling African ivories into Guangdong via Hong Kong, Ma said.

The special task force consisted of officers from Shenzhen, Zhanjiang and Fuzhou customs.