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The rosewood amnesty finished in April – and since then the precious hardwood has come under strict CITES regulations – virtually eliminating rosewood as an export product. 

But the ghost of the Amnesty past continues to haunt the Forestry Department – because there’s plenty Rosewood that’s being classified as pre-amnesty still out there.

One man who knows well about that is American Charles Sellers. Â He has a concession to log in the Maya Mountain north forest reserve, and he also has a quantity of Rosewood – which he says qualifies as pre-amnesty product. Â He had hundreds of flitches it on his concessions block, but claims the villagers in Trio systematically stole it. 

He filed a police report, but while the investigation was ongoing a company called Edison B International Trading bought the rosewood from the villagers. Â Sellers says its his rosewood, but Forestry Department personnel showed up, and said he has no proof that is his. Â Yesterday, they ok’d the Mack Truck loading up with the rosewood, which Sellers says is the sanctioning of theft of his property. 

Chief Forest Officer Wilbur Sabido says Forestry made a very cautious assessment to determine if indeed the rosewood was cut pre-amnesty, and if it was legitimately procured. Â He says his department decided to allow the movement of that material by Edison B International Trading Company Limited. Â We looked up the Belmopan based company and found that it is owned by three Chinese and was established in august of last year. 

Sellers says he is now trying to confiscate the container of Rosewood from them. Â forestry says he has no proof that the material in there is his. Â Sellers says the flitches carry his brand – and the ones that don’t simply had it cut off. 

It’s like any other back and forth except that Sellers has pulled a powerful trump card. Â He told us today that no other than GIV Import/Export Company – that’s German Vega’s company – is working on his behalf. Â And that’s because they had planned to buy the Rosewood form Sellers, only to have the other company come in and scoop it up – with Forestry’s blessing.