Cross-border black bear smuggling case in Yunnan busted

The two bears.

Police in southwest China's Yunnan Province last week busted a black bear smuggling case, seizing two live wild black bears.

Three suspects, including two Vietnamese nationals, were detained, the forestry police bureau in Jinping County said in a statement Wednesday.

According to the statement, police received a report in early June that people had attempted to transport two black bears from Vietnam to China. They then launched an investigation into the case.

The Vietnamese suspects, surnamed Pu and Fan, allegedly transported the two bears from Vietnam to Jinping County on Friday via boat.

They were caught by police when they were trading the bears with the Chinese suspect, surnamed Qian.

The two bears, which were about four months old and in good physical condition, are being looked after in a national natural reserve in the county.

The three suspects are being held in police custody. Further investigation is under way.

Editor: Mu Xu