Queens Man Sentenced To 3 Years For Smuggling Artifacts Made From Rhino Horns

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A New York City antiques dealer learned Thursday that if you mess with the rhino, you get the horns.

The dealer who pleaded guilty to conspiracy for smuggling artifacts made from rhinoceros horns from the U.S. to China was sentenced to three years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Katherine B. Forrest also sentenced Qiang Wang, known as Jeffrey Wang, to three years of supervised release in Manhattan federal court Thursday.

Wang pleaded guilty in August to smuggling Asian artifacts made from rhino horns and ivory from New York to Hong Kong and China in violation of wildlife trafficking laws. Rhinos are an endangered species.

Authorities said the 34-year-old Queens man faked U.S. Customs documents on packages containing the artifacts. They said they also seized ivory carvings from his apartment.

An attorney for Wang didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

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