Zhuhai’s Gongbei Customs announced in a statement yesterday that its officers seized 6.8 kg of endangered blue shark fins at the Hengqin checkpoint on September 3.
According to the statement, a Macau single-plate vehicle entered the Chinese mainland through the checkpoint at around noon on that day without declaring any goods to Customs officers.
During a routine inspection, officers discovered a batch of suspected endangered shark fins on the vehicle’s rear seats and floor.
The statement noted that the Gongbei Customs Technology Centre identified the items as products of blue sharks, comprising 180 pieces with a net total weight of 6.8 kilograms.
The blue shark (Carcharhinidae) belongs to the requiem shark family and is listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
Gongbei Customs reminded the public that under CITES and mainland regulations on the import and export of endangered wild animals and plants, trading, carrying, or mailing endangered species and their products across the border is prohibited without a valid official import or export certificate. Serious violations that constitute criminal offences will lead to criminal prosecution, Gongbei Customs said.
This undated handout photo provided by Gongbei Customs yesterday shows a batch of 180 endangered blue shark fins, weighing a net total of 6.8 kilograms, seized from a Macau single-plate vehicle by customs officers at Hengqin checkpoint on September 3.
