XPost: bc.politics, van.general, vic.general   
   From: 40%Çonned@cda.ca   
      
   August 15, 2011 From Tuesday's Globe and Mail   
      
   Man smuggling bear paws arrested at Vancouver airport   
      
      
   Conservation officers expected to recommend stiff fines and jail time   
   Wrapped in foil and tucked in a carry-on bag, the bear paws were on their way   
   to Asia, part of a   
   shadowy, international trade in animal parts that flourishes even as   
   governments step up efforts   
   to contain it.   
      
   Instead, the paws - three of them, from two different black bears - were   
   spotted early Sunday by   
   security staff at Vancouver International Airport, where a 39-year-old man was   
   detained as he   
   attempted to board a flight to China.   
      
   The man, a Vancouver resident, was arrested and released on a promise to   
   appear in provincial   
   court in Richmond on Oct. 6, said Sergeant Dave Jevons of B.C.'s Conservation   
   Officer Service,   
   which is now in charge of the investigation.   
      
   B.C. prosecutors have yet to approve charges, but investigators are expected   
   to recommend stiff   
   fines and possible jail time.   
      
   "We will be seeking from Crown a recommendation for a very stiff penalty,"   
   Sgt. Jevons said   
   Monday. "We want people to know that if you do try this and you get caught,   
   it's not going to be   
   just a slap on the wrist. You will be significantly fined - if you are a   
   hunter, we will seek to   
   have your hunting privileges suspended ... that's where we look for the   
   deterrence effect."   
      
   Provincial legislation provides for a fine of up to $250,000 and up to six   
   months in prison for   
   a first offence, Sgt. Jevons said.   
      
   The trade in illegal animal parts includes bear paws, sometimes used in soups,   
   and bear gall   
   bladders, which are used in traditional medicines.   
      
   B.C. conservation officers regularly deal with incidents involving smuggled   
   bear parts, Sgt.   
   Jevons said, although he was not able to say how many such incidents have   
   occurred over the past   
   few years.   
      
   "We know it's an ongoing problem," he said. "Like any illicit trade, it is   
   very difficult to   
   quantify - because what we see is only a portion of the illegal activity."   
      
   Both individuals and organized groups are involved in the trade, he added.   
      
   It is legal to hunt both black and grizzly bears in B.C., but it is illegal to   
   sell any bear   
   parts.   
      
   The man could face charges under B.C.'s Wildlife Act as well as federal   
   legislation used to   
   enforce Canada's obligations under CITES, the Convention on International   
   Trade in Endangered   
   Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.   
      
   In 2009, a B.C. company was fined $45,000 for illegally possessing medicine   
   that contained tiger   
   parts.   
      
   An Environment Canada investigation found the company possessed medicine and   
   products made from   
   some of the rarest species on the planet.   
      
      
   *******************************************************   
   "We CAN look after each other better than we do today.   
   We CAN have a fiscally responsible government.   
   We CAN have a strong economy; greater equality; a clean environment.   
   We CAN be a force for peace in the world."                      - Jack Layton   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)