A woman has been convicted and fined for smuggling Asiatic black bear bile from China - the first such case in New Zealand.
Litao Xu was fined $7500 after pleading guilty in Auckland District Court yesterday to illegally importing twelve vials of crystal made from the bile.
The bears are protected and any trade in the bears, or products made from them, is prohibited.
Dylan Swain from the Department of Conservation told RNZ reporter Amy Williams, the woman had previously tried to bring in seahorses and endangered plants.
