MEXICO CITY: Mexican police have seized 17 tonnes of pre-cooked sea cucumbers, a protected species, that were bound for Hong Kong and the United States and valued at $850,000, authorities said Thursday.
Three people were detained after the frozen specimens were found in two vehicles that were stopped by federal police in the cargo area of Cancun's international airport on the Caribbean coast. After a truck's two operators showed documents with irregularities, the officers found 11 tonnes of sea cucumbers worth $550,000 that were headed to Hong Kong, the federal police said in a statement.
In an inspection of a second vehicle, police found six tonnes of the pre-cooked marine animal that was destined for Florida, with a value of $300,000. The three suspects were detained for presenting fake documents about the origin of the sea cucumbers. The slug-like bottom feeders are illegally fished off Mexico's Caribbean coast and shipped to China, where they are considered a delicacy.–AFP