NINGBO, China, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- Chinese customs officers have arrested four people for attempting to smuggle more than 1,000 dinosaur eggs and rare fossils to the United States.
Officers seized a shipment of 15 crates at the port city of Ningbo in Zhejiang province Monday after receiving a tip as to their contents, the South China Morning Post reported Thursday. The crates were labeled as Christmas tree ornaments.
A Canadian-Chinese businessman was among those arrested.
Authorities said it was the province's biggest fossil smuggling case since the customs office was set up in 1979. Experts said the 1,170 pieces included national treasures.
Fossils cannot be excavated, sold or shipped overseas without permission from the Ministry of Land and Resources, the report said.
