Nine tonnes of elephant tusks and 12 tonnes of pangolin scales seized in Singapore

City-state is crucial transit point for illegal wildlife trade, WWF says

Elephant tusks confiscated in Singapore (EPA)

Singapore has seized nine tonnes of elephant tusks, believed to have been illegally gathered from nearly 300 African elephants, in the country’s largest ever haul of ivory.

Officials also seized 12 tonnes of pangolin scales belonging to around 2,000 of the endangered mammals.

Authorities found the ivory and scales in containers being shipped to Vietnam after receiving a tip off from China’s customs department.

The elephant tusks are believed to have come from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Officials said they would dispose of all the material.

“The seized pangolin scales and elephant ivory will be destroyed to prevent them from re-entering the market,” the Singapore Customs, Immigration and Checkpoints Authority and the National Parks Board said.

The authority said it was the city-state’s third major seizure of pangolin scales this year.

Pangolins are the most widely trafficked mammal in the world. The animal’s scales are made of keratin and they are often ground up for use in traditional Chinese medicines.

The critically endangered mammal’s meat is also considered a delicacy in Vietnam and China.

Officials said the seized scales were worth £28.7m and the tusks £10.3m.

Singapore is a transit point for illegal wildlife trade.

There have been multiple seizures in the city-state in recent months, as well as others in Hong Kong and Vietnam.

“Singapore has always been inadvertently implicated in the global ivory trade for two reasons: its global connectivity, as well as the presence of a small domestic market where pre-1990s ivory can be legally sold,” said Kim Stengert, chief communications officer for WWF Singapore.

“The consistency of these large-scale seizures is strong evidence of organised crime behind illegal wildlife trade coming through or into Singapore.”

The city-state is a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and is committed to curbing illegal wildlife trade.

Additional reporting by agencies