100 days to crack the 'tiger claw' case by Nghe An police.

(Baonghean.vn) - The illegal trade in rare wild animals, from turtles, snakes, and tortoises to particularly rare species such as tigers, leopards, and flying squirrels, has emerged in some communes of Dien Chau and Yen Thanh districts, reaching alarming levels.

In early 2016, through intelligence gathering, the Environmental Police Department of Nghe An Province received information that several individuals in Nghe An, who frequently traveled to Laos for business, were suspected of trafficking rare and endangered wild animals, subsequently selling them in China. Some individuals were even found to be trafficking large quantities of tiger claws, with each shipment valued at billions of dong. Upon investigation and verification, the detectives confirmed that this information was credible.

Considering the complex nature of the case, the leadership of the Environmental Police Department assigned Team 2 to establish Special Case No. 125L to investigate, headed by Major Tran Minh Son, Deputy Head of the Department; Major Tran Van Hung, Team Leader of Team 2, served as Deputy Head, along with experienced detectives and investigators who quickly got involved.

Number of tiger claws recovered

After gathering sufficient evidence to identify the main traffickers of "child" trafficking residing in several communes of Yen Thanh and Dien Chau districts, the investigators went to these locations to investigate and gather information.

Hundreds of individuals are currently on the list of suspects. The special task force is paying particular attention to large-scale drug traffickers and truck and bus drivers traveling from Laos to Nghe An. After a week in Do Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district, investigators identified Vu Truong Thi as a key suspect. He frequently traveled to Laos for business and had connections with several individuals involved in the trafficking of "child" goods.

On January 18th, when the passenger bus carrying Thi's "animals" from Laos arrived at the Yen Ly intersection in Dien Chau district, police officers spotted Vu Truong Thi in a Camry car. As soon as Thi unloaded the "animals" from the vehicle, the Environmental Police force of Nghe An Province swooped in and caught him red-handed. The seized items included 5 pangolins, 1 turtle, and 2 softshell turtles.

Following the successful arrest of Thi for the illegal trafficking of rare wild animals, the Environmental Police Department of Nghe An Province conducted an expanded investigation, which led to the identification of Cao Xuan Vo (born in 1990), residing in Dien Lam commune, Dien Chau district. This individual frequently traveled to Laos for business but showed signs of engaging in the illegal trade of animals.

Unlike Vu Truong Thi, Cao Xuan Vo was not frequently present in Laos. Before loading the "subsidiary" goods onto trucks for transport from Laos to Nghe An, this individual often spread rumors that the goods were purchased at auction by authorities in Laos to mislead public opinion and law enforcement. Using this tactic, Vo successfully transported a large quantity of "subsidiary" goods from Laos to Nghe An for sale.

After nearly 100 days of establishing the special investigation, on a day in early May 2016, detectives from Team 2 of the Environmental Police Department received information that Cao Xuan Vo was preparing to transport a large quantity of tiger claws from Laos to Nghe An by passenger bus.

To prevent any rash actions from the suspect, the special task force decided to seize the shipment at Vo's private residence in Dien Lam commune, Dien Chau district.

On May 9th, upon receiving information that Cao Xuan Vo had "sent" hundreds of tiger claws on a passenger bus traveling from Laos to Nghe An, following instructions from the leaders of the Nghe An Provincial Police and the leaders of the Environmental Police Department, Major Tran Van Hung, Team Leader of Team 2, and Captain Nguyen Canh Nam quickly arrived at Dien Lam commune.

Open the seal and take samples for testing.

At approximately 12:00 PM on May 10th, detectives spotted a passenger bus with a Lao license plate arriving near Bung Bridge in Dien Ky commune, Dien Chau district. At the same time, a man on a motorbike wearing sunglasses received a package from the bus and quickly left the scene. Identifying the man on the motorbike as Cao Xuan Vo, detectives Tran Van Hung and Nguyen Canh Nam immediately pursued him. Upon reaching Dien Lam commune, the detectives observed Vo turning into his private residence in Hamlet 3.

At approximately 3 PM on the same day, while Vo and his relatives were sorting tiger claws, a task force from the Environmental Police Department, in coordination with the Dien Chau District Police, unexpectedly raided the premises and seized 680 tiger claws.

Major Tran Minh Son, Deputy Head of the Environmental Police Department, said: "The entire shipment of tiger claws is equivalent to that of 37 tigers that were killed. Each claw is worth between 1 and 4 million VND on the 'black market' price, so the total value of the shipment is nearly 2 billion VND."

All the seized items have been sealed by the investigation team, awaiting the results of the forensic examination before being processed according to the law. On May 14th, authorities in Hanoi arrived at the Criminal Investigation Department of the Nghe An Provincial Police to unseal all the tiger fangs and claws to collect samples for forensic examination to support criminal proceedings.

Trong Huu