Nassau Man Sentenced To 2 Years In Prison For Trafficking Endangered Rhinoceros Horns

A Syosset business owner was sentenced to two years in jail on Monday for illegally trafficking horns from endangered black rhinoceroses, according to the Department of Justice.

In November 49-year-old Fengyi Zhou, who has worked as an Asian art dealer for years, pleaded guilty to wildlife trafficking in violation of the Lacey Act.

Zhou admitted to purchasing as many as five un-carved rhinoceros horns from another Asian arts dealer in New York, according to the Department of Justice.

Along with the horns, he was given an “Endangered Species Bill of Sale,” from which Zhou was made aware that four of the horns were purchased in Texas and unlawfully transported to New York, according to the Department of Justice.

Immediately after purchasing the horns, Zhou offered to sell and later sold them, to an associate who was a Chinese national residing in the People’s Republic of China for over $130,000.

"Illegal trade in rhino horn and ivory undermines vital efforts to protect imperiled species and is a serious violation of U.S. and international laws,” Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey H. Wood of the Environment and Natural Resources Division said. “The Justice Department will continue to prosecute those guilty of illegal wildlife trafficking.”