WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th October, 2022) The US Treasury sanctioned on Friday Malaysian national Teo Boon Ching, the Teo Boon Ching Wildlife Trafficking Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO), and the Malaysian company Sunrise Greenland for the cruel trafficking of endangered and threatened wildlife and the products of brutal poaching.
"Wildlife trafficking groups are cruel and inhumane, and they also perpetuate corruption and illicit finance," Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson said, as quoted in a press release. "The United States considers wildlife trafficking to be not only a critical conservation concern, but also a threat to global security."
Teo specializes in the transportation of rhino horn, ivory, and pangolins from Africa, generally utilizing routes through Malaysia and Laos and onward to consumers in Vietnam and China. During his two-decade long involvement in the illegal wildlife trade, Teo claims to have transported multiple metric tons of rhino horn, ivory, and pangolins.
The Treasury designated TCO for being a foreign person that constitutes a significant transnational criminal organization. Teo himself was designated for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, TCO. Sunrise Greenland was designated for being owned or controlled by, directly or indirectly, Teo.
