MAN SENTENCED FOR SMUGGLING IVORY INTO US

A LIBERIAN immigrant who smuggled about 90 kilograms of elephant ivory to the United States was sentenced to four months in a halfway house and fined $1 500. Ebrimo Marigo (36) of Los Angeles was sentenced on Monday in federal court. Prosecutors said the ivory was smuggled in April from Nigeria and carried in four hollowed-out chair frames and a large box. Marigo was stopped at Los Angeles International Airport by custom agents who thought the items might contain narcotics. Instead, they found 22 whole elephant tusks and about 150 smaller pieces of ivory. African elephants are considered an endangered species. The United States has signed an international treaty barring the import of endangered species without permission. – Sapa-AFP