Customs officials at Suvarnabhumi airport yesterday seized 41 kilograms of elephant tusks smuggled in from Africa, but no smugglers were arrested.


Chaiyudh Khamkhun, deputy director-general of the Customs Department, said the seizure of the elephant tusks inside a paper box was made at the airport’s cargo office after it arrived since September but nobody came to claim it.


He said the box was opened after it was suspected to have smuggled elephant tusks inside as earlier customs officials received tipoff that there was an attempt by smugglers to smuggle tusks to Thailand on a flight from Africa.


The paper box was wrapped with black plastic sheet and was declared to contain furniture inside.


Information on the box showed it was sent from Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of the Congo, on an Ethiopian Airline’s Flight ET861, and later changed to Flight ET628 from Addis Ababa to Thailand.


After nobody came to pick it up, customs officials, then brought the box for scanning which showed objects similar to elephant tusks were inside.


The opening of the box was then decided and witnessed by representatives of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, and the police.


A total of 28 elephant tusks weighing 49.09 kilograms were inside.


All were later collected by the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation for keeping, while the police will look for the receiver of the box.


Elephant tusks smuggled inside unclaimed box at Suvarnabhumi airport from Congo - Thai PBS English News