By Tileni Mongudhi | 4 March 2025
Influential Chinese businesswoman Qiaoxia ‘Stina’ Wu is under investigation for allegedly attempting to smuggle seal genitals from Namibia to China in December.
The shipment, which was not accompanied by the proper documentation, was discovered to be undervalued.
Chinese authorities in Hong Kong had flagged the shipment and alerted Namibia that suspicious cargo from Namibia, not accompanied by the relevant Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites) documentation, had been intercepted.
Cites aims to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species.
CRIMINAL CASE
In a twist to the tale, the authorities, who initially suspected Chinese businessman Hou Xuecheng, have shifted their focus to Wu.
Hou was arrested at Hosea Kutako International Airport on 7 January in connection with another case of suspected seal genital smuggling – from Namibia to Angola.
He was not granted bail and remains in custody.
Hou was earlier released on bail relating to a case of assault by threat in which Wu accused him of threatening to kill her on 24 December 2024 – the same day the seal genitals were allegedly smuggled out of Namibia.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the Customs and Excise Act, the Controlled Wildlife Products and Trade Act, the Animal Health Act and the Prevention of Organised Crime Act were contravened.
The authorities are now considering instituting criminal charges.
Namibia Revenue Agency (Namra) spokesperson Tonateni Shidhudhu has confirmed that an investigation is underway and that preliminary investigations indicate a crime being committed.
“In this case, the exporter submitted false information to conceal the true nature of cargo, thereby engaging in smuggling, avoiding detection as a Cites-listed product and evading customs physical examination,” Shidhudhu says.
Had the exporter provided accurate information about the shipment, customs would have flagged it, he says.
This would have led to the required inspections and verification processes before the shipment was allowed to leave Namibian shores.
As a result of the preliminary findings, a joint investigation task team had been assembled to look into the matter, Shidhudhu says.
It consists of Namra officials, the police, and the ministries of health and environment.
A government official briefed on the case has told The Issue that the politically connected Wu is now a key figure in the investigation.
She is close to former police chief-turned-Ohangwena governor Sebastian Ndeitunga and minister of labour, industrial relations and employment creation Utoni Nujoma, as well as other senior figures in the police and Swapo.
‘IT WASN’T ME’
Wu has denied any involvement in the transaction.
She says her business dealings primarily involve property development and alleges that the exporter of the seal genitals was Min ‘Charlie’ Xie.
Wu believes her name was probably linked to the transaction because she has acquired shares in Xie’s Kingsway Plaza in Windhoek’s central business district.
She says the fact that their offices are next to each other could also contribute to the confusion.
The Issue has seen documents indicating that Wu’s At Helmsman Group was involved in exporting the seal genitals to Hong Kong.
The 20kg consignment of seal bull genitals, worth about N$1 million, was flagged in Hong Kong after it seamlessly made its way through Namibian customs and airport control on Christmas Eve.
The shipment was listed as belonging to Virgo Biotechnology, which is owned by Xie.
Investigations by The Issue have revealed that Virgo Biotechnology only applied for a Cites permit on 6 January – two weeks after the shipment was intercepted.
In a letter of motivation to the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism, Xie pleaded with the ministry to urgently issue the company a permit, because “we were not aware that Hong Kong subscribes to Cites requirements at the time of exporting from Namibia, on or about 25 December 2024”.
MISUNDERSTANDING
“There is no criminal activity here,” Xie said.
He said it was all a misunderstanding – that it was his company’s first attempt to export goods of that nature and he didn’t know a Cites certificate was required.
He said the company was advised that it needed an export permit from the Ministry of Industrialisation and Trade, a certificate from the Ministry of Health and Social Services, and customs documents, which he had complied with.
“No one told us about Cites, and it was our first time,” he said.
Xie said neither Namra nor their customs clearing agent had notified him that he needed Cites certification.
He confirmed applying for the Cites certification afterwards because he wanted to clear the shipment which had been sent to China for “research purposes”.
Shidhudhu confirmed that the shipment’s declared value was US$407, approximately N$7 300, while it was actually worth about N$1 million.
“This discrepancy suggests an attempt to manipulate the value for purposes that may include tax evasion or other illicit activities,” he said in an email to The Issue.
Xie refuted this claim by the revenue agency.
“The 20kg was for free, for testing. It was not for commercial purposes,” he said.
He told The Issue he did not under-declare the shipment’s value.
He said this particular shipment didn’t cost anything and that Virgo Biotechnology only underwrote the transport costs.
He said the consignment, valued at N$1 million, which the authorities are referring to, is still in storage in his custody in Namibia.
Xie said he bought the seal genitals from Uukumwe YEC, a fishing company with rights to harvest seals from Lüderitz.
He insisted that Uukumwe had given him a free consignment in the hope of a future business partnership involving setting up a factory to convert seal products into beauty and skincare products.
However, Uukumwe director Julius Namoloh told The Issue that he needed to investigate Xie’s claims, because as far as he knew no seal genitals were given to Xie for free.
AT ODDS WITH NAMRA
This is not Wu’s first brush with the law and Namra.
Last year, The Issue reported that Wu’s At Helmsman Group was found to have submitted a falsified tax clearance certificate while applying for a work permit for an employee.
The said good-standing tax certificate was issued on 24 October 2023, but was declared ‘inauthentic’ by Namra a month later.
At the time, Wu defended herself and her company, At Helmsman Group, saying they were not involved in the process that led to her company being flagged as having submitted a fake good-standing tax certificate to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration, Safety and Security.
Wu blamed financial consultants employed to help her company comply with the law. – The Issue
