Canadian dealer sentenced to 2 years for role in U.S. Rhino smuggling

A Canadian citizen has been sentenced to two years in prison for smuggling cups made from Rhinoceros horns, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement on Friday. Linxun Liao, 35, was sentenced in U.S. Federal Court in Manhattan for his role in purchasing and smuggling more than $1 million of 16 libation cups from the U.S. to China. In late-June, Liao pleaded guilty to two counts of smuggling the cups outside of the U.S. Liao was charged in February as part of Operation Crash, a thorough crackdown of illegal Rhinoceros trafficking throughout the country. “This prosecution is the result of a vigorous and ongoing investigation into traffickers profiting from endangered and precious wildlife species,” said U.S. Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice John Cruden. “We must ensure that the market for antiques and alleged antiques does not also contribute to the extinction of these iconic animals, which could disappear in our lifetimes if we do not act now to stop this illegal trade.” Over a 14-month period from March, 2012 through May, 2014, Liao completed online purchases of 16 Rhinoceros horns from auction houses in Manhattan before smuggling the products to China, according to court filings. Liao completed the shipments without making the requisite export declarations to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or obtaining the required permits for international trade, the court records showed. “Each of the ceremonial cups that Liao trafficked represents one step closer to extinction for the rhinoceros, which are steadily being wiped out by poachers for the illegal rhino horn market,” said Dan Ashe, director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “The seriousness of this crime and others like it and their consequences for the world’s most imperiled species are what drives our efforts to root out and shut down illegal operators like Mr. Liao. In recent years, the illegal wildlife trade has generated as much as $19 billion annually, according the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In February, 2014, law enforcement officials from 28 countries, including the U.S. completed a month-long operation aimed at combating wildlife poaching. The efforts resulted in the capture of 36 rhino horns, 10,000 turtles and 10,000 European eels. In addition to Liao's incarceration, he was ordered to forfeit $1 million and 304 pieces of carved ivory found in a search of his New Jersey home.