Major seizure of woolly mammoth tusks and precious stones bound for China

A haul of 200 kilograms of mammoth tusks and half a ton of precious and semi-precious stones worth at least $305,000 - and possibly a far higher value - was impounded on the Russian-Chinese border. The goods were concealed under fake flooring in a Frenchlayner truck.

There were sacks of tusks of extinct woolly mammoths and 500 kilograms of stones along with seven sacks of soil, the composition of which is currently still being studied by experts.

A 300 kg quantity of the stones was identified as charoite, a rare lavender-shaded silicate mineral which has been described as the most exotic gem on the planet, found only in the Sakha Republic of Siberia. Some 200 kg of white and green jade was also hidden in the illegal consignment, as was a 4 kg of Yakut emerald. At least one tusk seems to have been stolen from a Russian museum.

Another batch of two dozen mammoth tusks was found in two Chinese minibuses, it was revealed. 

Semyon Grigoryev, director of the Mammoth Museum in Yakutsk, said: 'Potential resources of mammoth tusks just in the north of Yakutia may be up to 450,000  tons. 

'There is a steady demand for this in both domestic and foreign markets. We, the scientists of the Mammoth Museum, cannot control illegal gathering of the tusks.'

The bear paws were found in a cargo train at Zabaikalsk - bound for China. The frozen paws were packed in plastic bags and hidden in a carriage full of coal. The culprits are unidentified.

Bear paws and tusks have potential medicinal value in China.