Cops red-faced after suspect's elaborate slip

A MARTIAL arts expert caught with tons of illegal ivory gave local police the slip and travelled abroad seven times - despite his passport having been confiscated and being under strict bail conditions.

Red-faced police in Cape Town are now investigating how Chinese-born Xiong Changsen pulled his Houdini-like stunt. Changsen has been living in the city under bail conditions that compelled him to report and sign in at the Sea Point police station every Monday and Friday.

His passport was locked away when, in April 2008, the courts granted him R20000 bail after he was arrested and charged with being in possession of 9113kg of ivory and stolen items.

But the 41-year-old kung fu instructor, the Sunday Times has established, allegedly found a way to bypass authorities and flew to China seven times over two years before he was found out.

It appears that someone reported to the police station twice a week - while border records showed that Changsen was out of the country.

Police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Andre Traut said the matter was handed over to the Hawks for investigation. "Handwriting samples from the bail condition register were obtained for comparison and sent to forensics," said Traut.

Home affairs also confirmed that a probe was conducted. Spokesman Manusha Pillai said: "Since the government does not issue passports to permanent residents, Mr Changsen continues to travel on a Chinese passport."

While police records showed that Changsen reported to the station religiously, records unearthed by home affairs indicated that he left the country seven times in 2010 and 2011. His trips abroad include one a day before the 2010 Soccer World Cup kicked off. He returned 14 days later. Between September and October 2010, he was away for 28 days. Changsen was granted permanent residency in 2007 and will apply for bail at the Khayelitsha Priority Crimes Court on Tuesday.

He was arrested for a second time in a flat in Ocean View on December 20 last year while allegedly carving ornaments from ivory. A suspicious neighbour who smelled "burning hair" called the police who found R800000 worth of ivory, foreign currency, laptops and cellphones. They also arrested a second man, Xiaolin Xing. Changsen will return to court on March 6 . He is in custody at Pollsmoor Prison.