A three-month investigation in China resulted in the confiscation of about $4 million worth of endangered wildlife parts, the China Daily reports.
The contraband included 1,764 pounds of raw ivory and related products, 25 pounds of rhino horn and 35 bear paws, the newspaper said Monday.
The investigation was led by the Beijing Forest Police Bureau and uncovered a trafficking ring that stretched from mainland China through Hong Kong and Japan. The probe also led to 16 arrests in the Beijing, Hebei, Guangdong and Shandong provinces.
"This successful operation has helped dismantle an entire smuggling ring and the infrastructure that goes with it," Zhou Fei, head of the Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce, told the newspaper.
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