The items found in the container were seized by Malaysian authorities. The Royal Malaysian Customs Department said on July 18 that they found the items after checking a ship. An estimated 80 million ringgits was the value of the container.
These illegal exports are hidden in containers. Behind the sawn timber, they were hidden. 55 pounds of rhino horns, 220 pounds of pangolin scales, 661 pounds of animal skulls, horns, and bones were seized. The rhino horn, pangolin scales, and ivory tusks are believed to have healing powers.
The international trade of pangolins has been banned but the illegal trade continues. The pangolin population seems to be in decline according to the World Wildlife Crime Report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. It's difficult to estimate the amount of pangolins that have been illegally traded because of things like the weight of the pangolin scales.
The ivory trade has been banned under the convention. Most of the tusk seizures have been made by constant investigations. Malaysia is one of the top three countries in the world that leads in ivorySeizures.
The importer and the shipping agent will be looked at by the Royal Malaysians Customs Department, but no further details were given. It is not clear if the items were meant to be sent to other parts of Asia.
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