The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has repatriated Zhang Shijie, a Chinese fugitive wanted in China over the alleged sm¥ggling of about 1,400 tonnes of endangered African rosewood.
Zhang was arrested by operatives of the INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB), Abuja, on September 10, 2026, in the Ogere area of Ogun State.
The police said he was wanted by the Yangpu Sub-Bureau of the Anti-Smuggling Bureau of Haikou Customs District in China over an alleged sm¥ggling operation involving Pterocarpus erinaceus, commonly known as African rosewood.
According to a statement issued on Thursday by Force Public Relations Officer, Ani Iniedu, Zhang was the subject of an arrest warrant issued on January 7, 2021. The alleged offences were committed between November 2020 and January 2021 and involved about 1,400 tonnes of the endangered tree species, valued at approximately 15.7 million Chinese yuan.
