It was the largest ivory find in Germany to date. The white gold should bring big money in Vietnam. A man from the Offenbach district is now on trial.
- Because of Ivory smuggling the trial begins against a man Neu-Isenburg near Offenbach.
- Around 1.2 tons of ivory from more than 150 Elephants should be shipped illegally to Vietnam.
- The Neu-Isenburg man faces a prison sentence of up to five years.
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Neu Isenburg / Cottbus – Am Cottbus Regional Court The process for the largest ever has been running since Thursday, October 29th Ivory smuggling who was ever blown up in Germany. On May 29, 2016, customs discovered on Berlin Schönefeld Airport eleven boxes with the precious ivory. “It is the largest ivory find in Europe in the last ten years,” said the responsible President of the General Customs Directorate, Uwe Schröder at the time. About 600 kilograms ivory was initially found by the customs officers in Berlin. They were declared as mantel clocks made of marble and were to be exported to Vietnam as air freight.
A defendant is said to have planned that ivory to process and sell in Vietnam in order to secure a permanent source of income. The 50-year-old is now on trial in Cottbus. As the “BILD newspaper” reports, the defendant is said to be one Man from Neu-Isenburg near Offenbach act. The prosecution does not confirm the defendant’s place of residence. Separate criminal proceedings are pending against a woman who was charged with exporting the contraband four years ago.
Ivory smuggling: at least 150 elephants had to die for the goods
According to the indictment, customs and justice found around 570 kilograms of ivory in a later raid in an industrial hall in Emmelshausen near Koblenz, which one of the two defendants had rented. The terrible background: at least 150 apparently African elephants had to die for this amount of ivory, like WWF experts appreciated in the assessment. The Trade in ivory is through that “CITES” agreement banned worldwide since 1989.
At the airport #Berlin Over 600kg of ivory were seized from Schönefeld ???? https://t.co/3WyEegAHo6 #stop poaching
– WWF Germany (@WWF_Deutschland) May 31, 2016
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The population of the African elephant is massively threatened – every year around 20,000 animals are poached, criticizes the environmental association WWF. The reason for this is that jewelery made from ivory can be sold at high prices on the black market. The 50-year-old suspect from the Offenbach district accuses the public prosecutor of an offense under the Federal Nature Conservation Act.
“Ivory trial” – man from the Offenbach district in court
According to the defense attorney, the defendant did ivory Acquired at flea markets in Germany. Some of it came from household liquidations and family property from the 1950s and 60s.
In the trial against the defendant from Neu-Isenburg (Offenbach district), experts have now clarified how old the tusks actually are and where they come from. This is relevant for the judgment, as the ivory from Africa may have come into force before one Ban on trade in ivory could have been introduced into Germany. According to the Cottbus regional court, the hearing of the experts was scheduled for Thursday (November 5th, 2020). The experts estimated that this was confiscated by customs Ivory from African elephants from the period between 1954 and 1990.
A customs officer held a seized ivory item in his hands during a press conference on 09.09.2016 in Berlin.
© Paul Zinken / dpa
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“Ivory trial” against suspects from Neu-Isenburg near Offenbach
Against the second Defendants, who was 20 years old at the time of the offense, is due Ivory smuggling temporarily discontinued. According to the regional court, the man’s whereabouts are currently unknown. As an assistant he is said to have processed ivory to enable the transport and the expensive sale on the black market.
The trial is scheduled to continue on November 12th. Then further testimony should be heard and the verdict is expected to be passed. The Neu-Isenburg man faces up to five years imprisonment. (iwe)
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