By Jose Tembe
A Vietnamese man has been arrested in Mozambique on suspicion of attempting to smuggle 11 rhinoceros horns out of the country.
The horns were being smuggled out in boxes purporting to hold coils for an electricity generator, police said.
The arrest was made at Maputo International Airport, local media report.
The suspect, named in his passport as Nguyen Tien Trung, was reportedly intending to fly to Vietnam, changing at Doha.
A local police spokesperson said they would investigate where the 12kg (26lb) of horn came from, as both the white and black species of rhinoceros are thought to be extinct in southern Mozambique. It is thought likely the horns came from neighbouring South Africa or Zimbabwe.
Less than a fortnight ago at the same airport, a Chinese citizen was arrested attempting to smuggle out nine elephant tusks.
Mozambican police believe both smuggling cases are part of an organised crime network, although not necessarily linked. BBC News
