US auctioneer fined $ 1.5 million for selling rhino horns
Miami: A Florida auction house owner pleaded guilty to selling illegal rhinoceros horns and elephant ivory and will pay a USD 1.5 million fine as well as face possible jail time, US authorities have said.
Christopher Hayes, the president and owner of the auction house Elite Estate Buyers Inc, doing business as Elite Decorative Arts in Boynton Beach, Florida, pleaded guilty yesterday in a US District Court in Miami. Hayes, 55, pleaded guilty to “an illegal wildlife trafficking and smuggling conspiracy in which the auction house sold rhinoceros horns and objects made from rhino horn, elephant ivory and coral that were smuggled from the United States to China,” the Department of Justice said in a statement yesterday. Hayes was caught in a sting that came as part of an ongoing special investigation called Operation Crash that has netted numerous criminals in the rhino horn trade in recent years. Court records show Hayes and his company sold six endangered black rhino horns. Two were sold for USD 80,500 to a Texas resident involved in smuggling the horns to China. Undercover agents with the US Fish and Wildlife Service bought two more, and another undercover agent consigned two horns for auction. “Elite aided foreign buyers by directing them to third-party shipping stores that were willing to send the wildlife out of the country with false paperwork,” said the statement. “As part of today’s plea agreement, Hayes and Elite have admitted to being part of a far reaching felony conspiracy in which the company helped smugglers traffic in endangered and protected species in interstate and foreign commerce, and falsified records and shipping documents related to the wildlife purchases in order to avoid the scrutiny of the FWS and US Customs and Border Protection.” Hayes has not yet been sentenced but could face up to five years in prison. Hayes and the auction house were not immediately available for comment yesterday. (AFP)
London black cabs get break over rivals on bus lanes
London: London’s iconic black cabs, under pressure from taxi app Uber and other upstarts, got some good news today: They won’t have to share their right to drive in the capital’s bus lanes with rivals. The city’s expensive black cabs benefit from a rule that allows them to move around quickly by using lanes set aside for buses. Rivals, such as Uber cars or cheaper taxis known as minicabs, are banned from the lanes. That rule was challenged by private taxi firm Addison Lee, which has long argued that it amounted to unfair state support.
But a European Union court sided with black cab drivers in a ruling, dismissing arguments that the bus lane policy violated European competition laws. The Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice said the policy did not use state resources to confer “a selective economic advantage” on London cabs. It also said that black cabs are not comparable to their rivals, because only black cabs can pick up customers without pre-booking.
“Drivers of black cabs are subject to strict standards in relation to their vehicles, their fares and their knowledge of London, whereas those standards do not apply to minicabs,” the ruling said.
Transport for London, the authority overseeing public transport in the city, has argued that allowing tens of thousands of minicabs to drive in bus lanes would impact the reliability of bus services.
The ruling goes some way in protecting the traditional black cabs from competitors, especially smartphone-based services such as Uber and Hailo.
London cabbies have reacted in fury to the apps’ entrance into the market, staging noisy protests that brought traffic to a standstill. Unlike their rivals, black cab drivers are self-employed, and most own their vehicle. Many cabbies take pride in their knowledge of London’s streets all cabbies must pass a test called “the Knowledge” and most say that drivers from rival firms are not as professional. Addison Lee can still appeal today’s ruling in British courts. (AP)
5 arrested for stealing rare bulldog puppy worth 16,000 pounds
London: Five men have been arrested in connection with the theft of a rare bulldog puppy worth 16,000 pounds last year, British police said while launching a fresh appeal to trace the dog. A man interested in buying the pup ran away with the eight-week-old lilac bulldog in Tadworth, Surrey, on October 17, allegedly assaulting a relative of the dog breeder on his way. While whereabouts of the puppy remains unknown, detectives re-issued an appeal for help in tracing the stolen puppy following the arrest of five men, the BBC reported. Detective Constable Eloise Lock said: “I would like to thank the public and media for their help following the original appeal in October, after which we had numerous enquiries to investigate. “I am now calling for the public’s help again as we still need to find the puppy and return her to the rightful owner. “Given the time elapsed since it was taken it could well have stayed at numerous premises, and may be out of the county of Surrey. “If you have noticed any unusual behaviour by your neighbours, or anybody you know in relation to any new pets they have, we need to hear from you. Two men, both aged 25, and three others, aged 24, 26 and 27, all from the Oxford area, have been arrested on conspiracy to commit robbery and have been released on bail until February 19 and 20 pending further enquiries. (PTI)
Man throws grenade at bus driver
Beijing: In a shocking incident, a 77-year- old man threw a grenade at the driver of a bus in east China’s Zhejiang province because he was disgruntled with him for stopping the bus beyond his stop on a previous ride. CCTV footage shows Wang Shichao, 77, lobbing the stick grenade into the driver’s compartment of the bus in the district of Wucheng. Fortunately, only the detonator went off –- with the explosives falling out of the device before any damage could be done. It caused a modest blast and a flurry of white smoke. Jinhua resident Wang went on trial on Monday for allegedly causing the explosion on the bus last October.
The stick grenade, an antique Wang had concealed in his basement for years, was old and defective. It fell apart –- a metal plate and a short wooden stick fell on the floor –- failing to cause damage or injury, the South China Morning Post reported. Wang was quickly subdued by other passengers on the half-empty bus before police arrived at the scene and arrested him. During his trial at the Wucheng District People’s Court, Wang said he was angry with the driver because he had not stopped precisely at the bus stop on a previous occasion. Wang went home and dug out the grenade. He took it to the bus on an afternoon in October, the court heard, and attempted to detonate it next to the driver’s seat. “I was too impulsive, only wanting to die together with the bus driver,” local media quoted Wang as telling the court as he pleaded guilty to the allegations. Wang’s attorney asked for leniency, citing Wang’s age, poor health, that it was his first offence and the lack of causalities or loss of property. The court would deliver its sentence at a later date. (PTI)
This restaurant offers free food to beautiful women
Beijing: A restaurant in Zhengzhou, capital of China’s Henan province, is offering a special deal in which women who achieve the highest scores in terms of beauty get a free meal. The offer, called “Pay by Beauty”, was launched by a restaurant specialising in “huoguo” — traditional dishes — where a group of plastic surgeons selects the lucky ladies for a free lunch, the Xinhua news agency reported Tuesday.
To win, the contestants have to scan their faces on a machine located inside the restaurant and the image is automatically sent to a team of specialists who will score the faces according to professional patterns.
The scores can be seen by all applicants on the second floor of the restaurant where every five women who get a higher score every 30 minutes will get a free meal.
It is not the first time that a Chinese restaurant has made such offers to attract more customers. Another restaurant in Chongqing municipality offers customers discounts or free meals depending on their weight. In the case of males, the greater their weight the greater the discount, although customers who exceed 140 kg will automatically receive a feast on the house. Women who weigh less than 34.5 kg will also get the same prize. A restaurant in Shanghai also offers discounts to the tallest customers. (IANS)