Pretoria – The South African Reserve Service (SARS) intercepted 10 rhino horns worth an estimated R4.99 million at OR Tambo International Airport at the weekend.
“The discovery was made when Customs officials followed up on a suspicious bag which led to a second bag that was offloaded from the cargo hold of the plane bound for Turkey. The contents were scanned and on inspection found to be four full rhino horns in the one bag and six in the other,” said the revenue service on Monday.
The horns weighing 24.96kg were discovered on Sunday.
Two passengers and their bags were handed over to the South African Police Service (SAPS) for further investigation.
“SARS wishes to thank customs staff for their focus, discipline and hard work. We are very proud of the dedicated commitment of SARS Customs staff in preventing illicit drugs and other goods from entering or leaving our country,” said SARS.
The revenue service said it will continue to work with all stakeholders at ports of entry, including law enforcement agencies to protect the country and its citizens by disrupting organised crime and reducing illicit trade activities.
