 |
| courtesy: South Africa National Commissioner |
A criminal duo of father and son from LaLa Land (Orange County, California) will be the guest of the federal government for three years-- behind bars. The two were described as being at the apex of rhino horn smuggling in the United States. They were sentenced yesterday in Los Angeles on federal smuggling and money laundering charges. Vinh Chuong Kha and his son Felix Kha were sentenced to 42 and 46 months respectively, not enough in
US Person's opinion, because their multimillion dollar operation played a direct role in the huge increase in rhinoceros poaching in Africa of recent years. Thousands of rhinos have suffered cruel deaths for their keratin, the same material that makes human fingernails. The black market price of rhino horn has reached almost $25,000 per pound. In their plea agreements the Kha's admitted purchasing horn on the international black market to be resold and made into libation cups or folk remedies. They admitted bribing at least one Vietnamese customs officials to ensure custom clearance of their shipments. The market thrives because of corrupt officials and lack of
serious law enforcement in Southeast Asia. Each defendant was ordered to pay $10,000 fines, $185,000 in tax fraud penalties, and $800,000 in restitution to the Multi-species Conservation Fund managed by the US Fish & Wildlife Service to aid international conservation efforts. Jimmy Kha's corporation Win Lee Corporation was also sentenced to five years probation and ordered to pay a $100,000 for wildlife trafficking. Not enough, when
rhinos are being forced to the brink of extinction by a cruel trade fueled by human greed and ignorance that kills a rhino every 11 hours. The Khas were taken down as part of Operation Crash conducted by the US Fish & Wildlife Service.
