/ 11 July 2012

Ivory smugglers nabbed in Cape Town tusk raid

Police have not ruled out the possibility of further arrests after two men were taken into police custody for the illegal possession of elephant tusks.
Police have not ruled out the possibility of further arrests after two men were taken into police custody for the illegal possession of elephant tusks.

Officials saw the tusks in the airport's storage facility during a routine inspection, said Lieutenant colonel Andre Traut on Tuesday.

"Police were notified and an operation was conducted which led to the discovery of 46 tusks concealed in two different containers," he said.

Traut said the value of the seized items would be established only when the nature conservation department had taken into account various aspects such as the weight and age of the tusks.

The men, aged 36 and 43, were both from Cape Town, he said.

Investigations were continuing and the possibility of further arrests had not been ruled out. – Sapa