A seafood salesman has been given a two-year suspended jail sentence after smuggling more than £53 million worth of endangered live eels out of the UK.

Gilbert Khoo transported the rare elvers from London to Hong Kong, hidden underneath chilled fish, between 2015 and 2017, London’s Southwark Crown Court heard.

Khoo, of Chessington in southwest London, was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment on each of three counts of evasion of a prohibition on the export of goods. Each sentence was suspended for two years.

He was also found guilty of three counts of failure to notify of the movement of animals.

But no penalty was imposed on him at today’s sentencing because hearings to retrieve the proceeds of crime will take place in the future.

World's most endangered animals Show all 17 1 /17 World's most endangered animals World's most endangered animals Amur Leopard Endemic to the far east of Russia, the Amur Leopard has a population of around 84 and is critically endangered. Here follows every species that the WWF lists as critically endangered. Getty World's most endangered animals Sumatran Elephant The Sumatran elephant population now stands at only 2400-2800 Getty World's most endangered animals Yangtze Finless Porpoise Endemic to China's Yangtze River, the Yangtze finless porpoise has an estimated population of 1000-1800 Kenichi Nobusue World's most endangered animals South China Tiger When discovered in the 1950s, the South China tiger population was estimated to be 4000, by 1996 it was estimated to be only 30-80. Scientists consider the tiger to be "functionally extinct" as one has not been sighted for over 25 years World's most endangered animals Sumatran Orangutan The Sumatran orangutan was once found across the island of Sumatra and even further south on Java. Today it is found only in the island's north and its population stands at 14,613 Getty World's most endangered animals Western Lowland Gorilla Though it is the most populous of all gorilla subspecies, the western lowland gorilla is still critically endangered and its population has declined by 60% in the last quarter century Getty World's most endangered animals Sumatran Rhinoceros The Sumatran rhinoceros is the smallest of the surviving rhinoceros species. Only 80 are known to be living today. The last male Sumatran rhino in Malaysia died on 28 May 2019 Willem V Strien World's most endangered animals Sumatran Tiger There are fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers left today. They are severely threatened by deforestation and poaching Getty World's most endangered animals Eastern Lowland Gorilla Half of the rainforest of the Democratic Republic of Congo in which these gorillas live has been destroyed the past 50 years. There were 17,000 Eastern Lowland gorillas in the 1990s but scientists estimate their population has declined by over 50% since then Getty World's most endangered animals Vaquita The world's rarest marine animal has a population of only 30. They were discovered in 1958 and are endemic to Mexico's Gulf of California Paula Olson / NOAA World's most endangered animals Javan Rhino The most threatened of all rhino species, there are only an estimated 58-68 Javan rhinos left Reuters World's most endangered animals Saola The saola was first sighted in 1992, being the first large mammal to be discovered in over 50 years. Scientists have only sighted saola in the wild four times and it is considered critically endangered World's most endangered animals Malayan Tiger The Malayan Tiger population now stands at only 250-300 Getty World's most endangered animals Hawksbill Turtle The population of the Hawksbill Turtle has declined by more than 80% in the last century. They are threatened by black market poachers who kill them for their shell Getty World's most endangered animals Black Rhino The population of the black rhino dropped by 98% in the years 1960-1995 due to poaching, it stands today at around 5000 Getty World's most endangered animals Cross River Gorilla The population of the Cross River gorilla has been damaged by deforestation and poaching, it now stands at 200-300 Julie Langford World's most endangered animals Bornean Orangutan The population of the Bornean orangutan has been reduced by over 50% in the past 60 years, now standing at around 104,700. Their habitat has been reduced by at least 50% in the 21st century Getty

Khoo was caught after Border Force officers found 200kg of the European “glass eels”, which are on the verge of extinction, at Heathrow Airport, in the first seizure of its kind in the UK.

The prosecution said the crimes took place over a two-year period, and involved 16 consignments with an estimated retail value of £53,265,000 in the illegal market for them in Asia.

Khoo kept the live eels, imported from countries within the European Union, in a barn in Gloucestershire, before repackaging them to be exported to Asia.

Judge Jeffrey Pegden, queen’s counsel, who also ordered Khoo to do 240 hours of unpaid work for the community, said: “In my view you played a leading role in this country in what was a large commercial operation driven by others, the purchasers abroad, where the desire for the glass eels was

abundant.”

The judge said he had “no doubt at all” that Khoo’s criminal operation had “a significant environmental impact upon the European glass eel”, which has a 30-year life cycle.

Glass eels are threatened with extinction unless the threat against them is closely controlled, the court heard.

The judge also said he was “certain” that Khoo had an expertise both in these eels and the fish market in general.

He added that Khoo had used “sophisticated” techniques to try to avoid detection.