Monday 14 December 2020

Jeweller Caught Selling Illegal Elephant Valuables

A jewellery shop boss, who advertised the sale of valuables containing banned elephant hair, has been sentenced.

Rajtharan Mahalingam, 40, of Down Lane, Isle of Wight received a suspended prison sentence when he appeared at Harrow Crown Court.

He was convicted of seven counts of purchase / offer to purchase / sell / keep for sale / commercial use of products containing specimens derived from endangered species.

This was contrary to the Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulations 1997.

Mahalingam received 32 weeks imprisonment, suspended for 16 months and was ordered to complete 200 hours community service work.

He was also fined £200, with £1,500 costs and all the seized jewellery, containing elephant hair was forfeited.

The court heard in 2017, the Metropolitan Police's Wildlife Crime Unit discovered via online research that a jewellery shop on Ealing Road, Wembley was selling jewellery claiming to contain elephant hair.

Enquiries were conducted and established the jewellery had been illegally imported as there were no permits in place for the premises to import, sell or commercially use specimens derived from elephants.

A warrant was carried out on the premises on May 15, 2018, and a large quantity of jewellery containing elephant hair was seized.

Mahalingam was interviewed under caution on May 21.

Forensic analysis was conducted on samples of the seized jewellery and hair. 

Results from the hair samples matched DNA from both an African and Asian elephant.

Detective Constable Sarah Bailey, of the Met’s Wildlife Crime Unit, said:“There are legal requirements in relation to the import, sale and commercial use of specimens derived from protected / endangered species and these had not been complied with.

African and Asian elephants continue to be poached and it is worrying that the derivatives of such activity may appear for sale in London.” 

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