Trial of Portuguese-Chinese gang trafficking baby eels delayed for third time

The beginning of the trial of a Portuguese-Chinese network of trafficking and illegal trade in elvers (baby eels) for the Asian market was postponed yesterday, for the third time, at the Court of Aveiro due to the strike of judicial officials, which began on Wednesday and will continue through to May 5. The strike is ensuring that hundreds of scheduled cases are not getting to be heard – resulting in all kinds of personal expenses for those who travel, in some cases from other countries, for what they believed was set to be their ‘day in court’. In this particular case, there are four defendants, including one Chinese national, charged with crimes of criminal association, smuggling and damage to nature. The case has two further Chinese citizens as defendants “who will be tried separately because they have not been located”, says Lusa.