Peruvian authorities seized eight million seahorses smuggled onto a Chinese-flagged ship bound for Asia, the government said.

Officers found the dried seahorses worth nearly $4 million in the hold of the ship at the port of Callao on June 7, a government statement said on Monday.

The Chinese captain of the ship was arrested.

Peru banned the catching of seahorses in 2004 over concerns for overfishing fueled by surging export demand including in China, where they are said to be used to make medicine.

A top official in the production ministry, Jesus Barrientos, said Peru was considering issuing an Interpol alert to crack down on Chinese ships handling seahorses.