Chinese vessels carrying 500 tons of undeclared offal detained

By Minh Cuong December 17, 2018 | 03:32 am PT

Seven Chinese cargo ships that declared ‘frozen buffalo meat’ were actually carrying offal and chicken legs, authorities say.

The ships were inspected and seized Sunday by Coast Guard Zone 1, four nautical miles southeast of Tran Ninh Island in the northern province of Quang Ninh.

The ships carried 15 crew members and nearly 500 tons of frozen cargo.

Some of the seven Chinese cargo ships are being detained for investigation. Photo by VnExpress/Lam Giang

Four of the seven Chinese cargo ships being detained for investigation. Photo by VnExpress/Lam Giang

According to port clearance documents, the seven ships were to depart from Van Gia port, Quang Ninh Province to go to Bach Long port, China, but it was actually heading from China to Tran Island, another island in Quang Ninh,

While the goods were declared as frozen buffalo meat, officials found that they were internal organs and chicken feet.

The ships’ captains told officials that they were told to go to Tran Island and await further orders.

The Coast Guard Command said they would contact the Chinese Coast Guard through a hotline to verify this incident and coordinate their response.