Dar es Salaam – Four men from China has been sentenced to twenty years in jail each for smuggling rhino horns.
The sentence was announced Thursday by Mbeya Resident Magistrate’s Court in southern Tanzania after finding the four Chinese nationals convicted.
The move of East African country is part of a crackdown on illegal poaching of protected wildlife.
The country heavily depends on safari tourism for revenues.
The four convicts are 33-year-old Song Leo, 29-year-old Xiao Shaodan, 34-year-old Chen Jianlin, and 30-year-old Hu Liang. All the four were charged for smuggling horns of eleven rhino in November from Malawi.
The four Chinese men have denied the charges.
It is reported the four entered the country as tourists but it was found they were involved in illegal possession of rhino horns, which were found hidden in their car.
According to regional police commander of Mbeye, Ahmed Msangi, the four Chinese men have been fined 9 billion shillings each too that is about 10 times the value of the rhino horns.
The pick-up truck loaded with rhino horns is also ordered for confiscation by the court. The electronic devices including iPads will also be taken away by the authorities.
Asia is a big market for rhino horns and traffickers make huge money from it as the horns have been used in Chinese medicine for centuries. In powder form it is used in the treatment of maladies including gout, rheumatism and also believed to cure devil possession.
The newly elected president has vowed to take strict measures to stop illegal poaching.
