MOSCOW, July 18 (RIA Novosti) - East Siberian police seized a minivan containing 129 bear paws, which were intended for China where the paws are used in traditional Chinese medicine, Russian prosecutors said.
"Preliminary reports suggest the paws were intended to be smuggled into China," the prosecutors' Web site said.
The bear paws can fetch around $1,000 each on the Chinese black market.
An inquiry has been opened into the illegal hunting and trading of endangered species and attempted smuggling. The possible sentence could be up to 14 years in jail.
