US says 2 Congolese pleaded guilty to ivory and rhino horn trade

Herdade Lokua, 34, and Jospin Mujangi, 32, of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, were arrested outside Seattle last November before a federal grand jury charged them with conspiracy, money laundering money, smuggling and breaking the law for smuggling.

“In their guilty pleas, the two suspects admitted that beginning in November 2019, they agreed to smuggle elephant ivory, white rhino horn and pangolin scales into the United States. “, said the Ministry of Justice in a press release.

They worked with a middleman to broker the sale and coordinate imports to Seattle, the Justice Department said, adding that Lokua and Mujangi received three packages weighing approximately 49 pounds (22 kg) between August 2020 and September 2020. shipped ivory from Kinshasa.

The World Wildlife Organization says the meat of the pangolin, often known as the “scaly anteater”, is considered a delicacy and its scales are used in traditional Chinese medicine, making it one of of the most traded mammals in the world.

Reuters was unable to immediately contact representatives of Lokua and Mujangi.