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Chinatown Restaurant Cited Under New Shark Fin Law

CHICAGO (STMW) -- A Chinatown restaurant has been fined and a shark fin confiscated by state Conservation Police, who enforced a new law that bans the sale or distribution of shark fins in Illinois.

Conservation Police received a tip that Minghin Cuisine's online menu listed shark fin soup prior to an inspection, a release from IDNR said.

On Tuesday, the suspected shark fin was confiscated and the restaurant, in the 2100 block of Archer Avenue, was issued a $120 citation—the first to be issued under the new state law.

The shark fin was later authenticated by staff at the Field Museum, a statement from IDNR said.

Illinois became the first non-Pacific state to enact a law against sale trade, or distribution of shark fins last July. The law is designed to help end the killing of sharks for fins and prevent the collapse of shark populations worldwide.

According to IDNR, shark fins are cut off for sale or trade, and the fish is thrown back into the ocean alive, where it bleeds to death or drowns.

(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2013. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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