NEW YORK (AP) - Federal authorities say six people have been arrested on charges of conspiring to smuggle the ivory of African elephants from Ivory Coast, Cameroon and Uganda into the United States.

The arrests took place in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia and Texas.

Authorities say the defendants disguised the ivory to avoid detection as it was smuggled through New York's Kennedy International Airport.

Further details of the case are to be made public as some of the defendants appear in Brooklyn court on Wednesday afternoon.

Authorities say the illegal ivory trade is the major cause of the decline of elephant populations in Africa. Importation of ivory into the United States has been a crime since 1976.