This archive of published media articles about wildlife crime in Namibia aims to:
Public access to information is a vital component of ensuring community engagement in prevalent issues. Wildlife crime is one of the pressing environmental issues of our time.
Wildlife crime investigations are generally covert operations requiring utmost confidentiality to succeed. Investigations and prosecutions in complex cases may take months or even years to complete. For this reason, the information that can be released to the public without compromising cases is often limited. Nonetheless, the Namibian government strives to share as much information as possible with the public.
The Namibian media has welcomed this approach and regularly publishes statistics and feature articles on wildlife crime. These are entered into the database at regular intervals, creating a comprehensive archive of wildlife crime reporting in Namibia.
Explore your search results using the filter checkboxes, or amend your search or start a new search.
Several suspects, some of whom are repeat offenders, were arrested for wildlife crimes last week and five new cases were registered. According to statistics provided by police and the environment ministry, four wildlife products were also seized last week - one giraffe tail, a live pangolin, an eland carcass and one live tortoise. Of the nine suspects arrested, one is a Zambian national and the rest are Namibians. Two Namibians, Makushe Frans Limbare and Muronga Timoteus, were arrested last Tuesday at Ndiyona for the illegal hunting of an eland.
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NAM_2019-11_Repeat offenders arrested for wildlife crimes_Namibian Sun.pdf | 82.93 KB |
Sixteen suspects were arrested in connection with wildlife crimes in the past week. Eight of the suspects are Namibians and the rest Zambians. Statistics provided by the Protected Resource Division of the Namibian police and the Intelligence and Investigation Unit of the environment ministry indicate that a total of 21 wildlife products were seized last week.
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NAM_2019-10_16 arrested for wildlife crime_Namibian Sun.pdf | 114.31 KB |
Namibia is among the countries with the lowest level of organised crime in Africa. This is according to a report by the Enact project, financed by the European Union (EU).
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NAM_2019-10_Organised crime low in Namibia_Namibian Sun.pdf | 93.49 KB |
One-hundred pieces of elephant tusk were seized and two suspects were arrested in Katutura during an operation by the Blue Rhino Task Team last week.
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NAM_2019-10_100 pieces of ivory confiscated_Namibian Sun.pdf | 106.78 KB |
A report that will be up for discussion at this week's World Wildlife Conference highlights inconsistencies in the exporting of rhino trophies from Namibia and says that 295 rhinos have been poached in Namibia between 2009 and 2018. It says the 44 rhinos that were poached in 2017 represented 1.5% of Namibia's rhino population. The 183 Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) will adopt decisions and resolutions to expand and further strengthen the global wildlife trade regime at to be considered at the 18th…
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2019_08_Cites concerned about poaching_Environment_Namibian Sun.pdf | 101.85 KB |
A total of 19 suspects were arrested for wildlife crimes during August with six new cases that were registered this month. This is according to wildlife crime statistics compiled by the Intelligence and Investigation Unit in the environment ministry and the Protected Resources Division in the Namibian Police. Statistics show that out of the 19 suspects arrested, two suspects were arrested for rhino poaching and or trafficking crimes (including cases of conspiracy of rhino poaching).
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NAM_2019-08_19 arrested for wildlife crime_Namibian Sun.pdf | 103.93 KB |
A total of 19 suspects were arrested for wildlife crimes during August with six new cases that were registered this month. This is according to wildlife crime statistics compiled by the Intelligence and Investigation Unit in the environment ministry and the Protected Resources Division in the Namibian Police. Statistics show that out of the 19 suspects arrested, two suspects were arrested for rhino poaching and or trafficking crimes (including cases of conspiracy of rhino poaching). Furthermore wildlife products that were seized included two live pangolin, one…
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NAM_2019-08_19 arrested for wildlife crime_Namibian Sun_0.pdf | 103.93 KB |
Four Chinese men, who were originally handed 14-year sentences for wildlife crimes, including rhino horn smuggling, had the shock of their lives when their appeal ended with the High Court also convicting and sentencing them for money laundering.
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NAM_2019-04_Appeal backfires_Namibian Sun.pdf | 97.69 KB |
Countries that make up the Kavango-Zambezi Trans-frontier Conservation Area (KAZA-TFCA) need to provide for specialist prosecutors that have knowledge about all wildlife crime-related legislation and the appropriate prosecution of offenders. This was the view of deputy environment minister Bernadette Jagger at the KAZA-TFCA Regional Judiciary and Prosecutors Workshop that is taking place in Windhoek.
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2019_02_Trans_boundary wildlife crime training_Environment_Namibian Sun.pdf | 112.79 KB |
A Windhoek oncologist has been granted N$50 000 bail by the Windhoek Magistrate's Court after he was arrested at the weekend for the illegal possession of three elephant tusks.
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NAM_2019-01_Oncologist granted N$50 000 bail_Namibian Sun.pdf | 100.17 KB |
The Chinese national who was arrested last month at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg after being caught with 18 rhino horns in his luggage has been denied bail. Ye Zhiwei, 28, appeared in the Kempton Park Magistrate''s Court in South Africa on Tuesday on a charge of dealing in rhino horn under the Endangered Spices Act. South African Hawks spokesperson Captain Ndivhuwo Mulamu confirmed to Namibian Sun that Ye was denied bail and that his case was postponed to 17 January for disclosure of evidence and for further investigation.
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SA_2016-12_No bail for accused rhino horn smuggler_Namibian Sun.pdf | 68.25 KB |
If rhino owners are not allowed to harvest and legally sell horns, poachers will kill every last rhino in Namibia. This is according to environment minister Pohamba Shifeta, who was speaking last week at a meeting where the poaching situation in the country was discussed. Shifeta said the price of a rhino horn has skyrocketed and is currently about N$900 000 per kilogram. "It is going up every day." He said if rhino range countries could sell rhino horns, the price will go down because the demand would still be there.
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NAM_2018-12_Poachers will kill every single rhino_Namibian Sun.pdf | 92.49 KB |
The Blue Rhino Taskforce has had phenomenal success in tracking down poaching syndicates in the four months of its existence.
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NAM_2018-11_Elite unit nails 73 poachers_Crime - Namibian Sun.pdf | 97.94 KB |
The High Court has granted permission to four Chinese nationals to appeal against their 14-year prison sentences for trying to smuggle 14 rhino horns and a leopard skin out of Namibia. The permission was granted on Tuesday when Li Zhibing, 53, Li Xiaoliang, 30, Pu Xuexin, 49, and Wang Hui, 40, appeared before Deputy Judge President Hosea Angula. The four men were arrested between March and May 2014 in what has been termed Namibia’s largest rhino-horn-smuggling case. The men were each sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment by Windhoek Magistrate Alexis Diergaardt at…
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NAM_2018-11_Smugglers may appeal against sentences_Namibian Sun.pdf | 63.58 KB |
While about 1 200 rhinos in Namibia are now in private care, the country is still experiencing high levels of poaching, with 29 rhinos poached this year already.
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NAM_2018-09_1 200 rhinos in private care_Namibian Sun.pdf | 102.74 KB |
The minister of environment and tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, this week hosted a public discussion about rhino and elephant poaching at Ongwediva. It was highlighted that perpetrators of such crimes are part of Namibian society and are sometimes hidden by members of the community. The discussion was part of an information-sharing session by the ministry at the Ongwediva Trade Fair in the Oshana Region.
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NAM_2016-09_Community members hide poachers_Namibian Sun.pdf | 100.2 KB |
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NAM_2018-08_N$10k per day to keep a rhino_Namibian Sun.pdf | 109.34 KB |
Rhino poaching in the northwest of Namibia has declined by 80% since it peaked in 2013. This is according to the CEO of Save the Rhino Trust (SRT), Namibia Simson Uri-Khob, who said that even though rhinos are still under threat, the organisation has been making great strides in protecting them in the northwest of the country. "Our tracking teams are dedicated and our intelligence unit is relentless in its pursuit of information that can be used to safeguard our rhinos, while our donors are supportive, which makes the statistics we have to share with you possible."
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NAM_2018-08_Northwest winning poaching war_Namibian Sun.pdf | 83.85 KB |
The environment ministry's anti-poaching unit has been in limbo for four years, awaiting budget allocations for appointments. Ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda confirmed yesterday there have been no new recruitments to the unit since retired police commissioner Ndahangwapo Kashihakumwa was officially appointed as its head on 1 August last year. At that stage Kashihakumwa and seven other members were appointed to the vital unit. Muyunda said due financial constraints the ministry has been unable to recruit anyone else to the unit, which will eventually consist of…
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NAM_2018-07_Anti_poaching unit in limbo_Namibian Sun.pdf | 95.93 KB |
The environment minister Pohamba Shifeta has expressed his concern with the change in tactics by would-be poachers.
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NAM_2018-02_Poachers using new tactics_Namibian Sun.pdf | 106.69 KB |
Investigations are ongoing at a farm on the outskirts of Windhoek where a rhino was poached over the weekend and its horns removed. Two rhinos were shot on Friday on a farm located near Aris and one of them survived the attack.
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NAM_2017-11_Rhino poached outside capital_Namibian Sun.pdf | 102.89 KB |
This year a total of 27 rhinos and 20 elephants have been poached, indicating a significant decline in poaching when compared to previous years. Releasing the latest statistics of recorded poaching incidents of rhino and elephants for this year, the environment and tourism minister, Pohamba Shifeta, said rhino poaching had gone done down by about 50% from 2016. In 2016, a total of 60 rhino were poached while 95 rhino were poached in 2015 and 56 rhino in 2014.
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NAM_2017-10_Poaching on the decrease_Namibian Sun.pdf | 108.3 KB |
Smuggling routes have become more convoluted as syndicates attempt to evade detection, a new report says. Namibia has been identified as a significant link in the international rhino-horn smuggling network. This follows a surge in rhino poaching in Namibia since 2013. Previously the country was not identified in this trafficking route. This is according to a rapid assessment of smuggling routes and techniques used in the illicit trade in African rhino horn.
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NAM_2017-10_Namibia turns into poachers paradise_Namibian Sun.pdf | 97.36 KB |
Owners of white rhinos have been warned to be careful when employing workers. With increased anti-poaching efforts taking place in Namibia the trend of rhino poaching has shifted to black rhino under custodianship and privately owned white rhinos.
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NAM_2017-09_Rhino owners must vet workers_Namibian Sun.pdf | 94.96 KB |
A teacher was among the suspects arrested for poaching this weekend in the Kunene Region, following the recent discovery of two rhino carcasses. This brings the total of poached rhinos in Namibia to 26 for the year compared to a total of 60 in 2016.
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NAM_2017-08_Teacher arrested for poaching_Namibian Sun.pdf | 110.18 KB |
The ministry of environment and tourism has issued corrected statistics on wildlife crimes since 2014. Huge inconsistencies have been uncovered in the environment ministry's statistics on wildlife crimes, with conflicting statistics on the number of poaching suspects arrested. Last week, the ministry released figures on the nationalities of people arrested in wildlife crimes in Namibia between 2014 and 2017. These figures did not correspond with the figures issued to Namibian Sun in February during an exclusive interview with the environment minister. Upon…
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NAM_2017-07_Poaching stats confusion_Namibian Sun.pdf | 110.13 KB |
Seven more rhinos have been killed by poachers in Etosha, driving the species ever closer to extinction. Seven rhino carcasses discovered during aerial patrols in the Etosha National Park at the weekend have been confirmed to have been poached. This brings the total of poached rhinos to 16 this year, while there have also been 16 elephants poached this year. Altogether 59 rhinos were poached in the country last year and 95 rhinos in 2015, 56 in 2014 and 9 in 2013.
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NAM_2017-06_Rhino death toll rises_Namibian Sun.pdf | 93.47 KB |
Seven rhino carcasses of which several have already been confirmed to be poached, were discovered in the Etosha National Park this past weekend during routine patrols by officials of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism. Ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda yesterday confirmed to Namibian Sun that during patrols in the park between 23 and 25 June seven rhino carcasses were discovered. "The carcasses are all believed to be for this year."
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NAM_2017-06_Seven rhino carcasses found in Etosha_Namibian Sun.pdf | 103.49 KB |
The bill, amongst others, proposes that foreigners who are found guilty of wildlife crimes will not be allowed back in Namibia after completing their jail terms. This will apply to foreigners who are found guilty of possession of, and dealing in, elephant and rhino products.
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NAM_2017-06_New wildlife law tough as nails_Namibian Sun.pdf | 106.64 KB |
A courier parcel containing 16 pieces of rhino horn was discovered at the Eros Airport on Friday. The parcel was destined for Malaysia via Johannesburg. The horns were concealed in a parcel from a local courier company, which contained coffee boxes.
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NAM_2017-05_Rhino horns intercepted at airport_Namibian Sun.pdf | 103.72 KB |
The Chinese man who smuggled 18 rhino horns through Hosea Kutako International Airport and was arrested in South Africa has been sentenced to a fine of R1.2 million or six years in prison. He paid the fine and will not spend any time in prison. Ye Zhiwei appeared before the Kempton Park Magistrate's Court last Wednesday.
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NAM_2017-04_No jail for rhino_horn smuggler_ Namibian Sun.pdf | 70.55 KB |
An outdated law stipulating lenient sentences for wildlife smuggling has led to the granting of bail to two alleged rhino-horn smugglers. The two Chinese nationals who were arrested in January for possession of rhino horns worth more than N$400 000 were granted bail of N$300 000 each yesterday. Yonghui Lu, 41, and Nan Chen, 29, appeared before Magistrate Venessa Stanley in the Windhoek Magistrate's Court and the case was postponed to 21 June for further investigation.
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NAM_2017-04_Two Chinese granted bail _Namibian Sun.pdf | 84.92 KB |
Foreigners who are found guilty of wildlife crimes will not be allowed back in Namibia after completing their jail terms. This is but one of the amendments contained in the Controlled Wildlife Products and Trade Amendment Bill that was tabled in the National Assembly by the minister of environment and tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, last week. This will apply to foreigners who are found guilty of possession of, and dealing in, elephant and rhino products. Shifeta said a court order would be issued and the person would be declared persona non grata after serving his or…
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NAM_2017-04_Lifelong ban for poaching convicts_Namibian Sun_2017.pdf | 68.87 KB |
he number of rhinos killed by poachers this year has risen to five after two more carcasses were found on the farm Okanenampanti belonging to businessman Frans Indongo. Environment ministry spokesman Romeo Muyunda yesterday confirmed these figures to Namibian Sun and said two rhino carcasses were found on Okanenampanti on 17 March. In January, a white rhino carcass without horns was discovered at the farm near Otjiwarongo, which is the location of the Frans Indongo Lodge. One of the carcasses discovered this month was still fresh while the other carcass was old, said Muyunda…
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NAM_2017-03_Poachers hit Indongos farm again_Namibian Sun.pdf | 68.57 KB |
The carcass of another black rhino has been found in the Kunene Region, making it the third rhino poaching incident in Namibia this year. According to the spokesperson of the Namibian Police, Edwin Kanguatjivi, the carcass of a black rhino calf was discovered on 15 March at Kliprivier in the Grootberg area. "The horns of the rhino were hacked off with a sharp unknown object," said Kanguatjivi.
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NAM_2017-03_Rhino carcass found at Grootberg_Namibian Sun.pdf | 103.79 KB |
The Chinese national who smuggled 18 rhino horns through Hosea Kutako International Airport and was arrested in South Africa, had received the rhino horns in Windhoek. Ye Zhiwei, 28, who pleaded guilty to charges of importing the rhino horns without the necessary permits in the Kempton Park Regional Court in
South Africa, said in his plea explanation that he had received 15 black rhino horns and three white rhino horns at a hotel in Windhoek.
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NAM_2017-02_18 horns received in Windhoek_Namibian Sun.pdf | 108.29 KB |
Foreigners who are found guilty of wildlife crimes should serve out their sentences, be deported and should not be allowed back in Namibia. This is the view of environment minister Pohamba Shifeta, who says the Nature Conservation Ordinance Act is outdated and far too lenient in its sentencing of poachers. According to Shifeta, the ministry is in the process of amending the Act and proposed fines for poaching will range from N$100 000 to N$25 million.
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NAM_2017-02_Shifeta wants a wildlife court_Namibian Sun.pdf | 76.34 KB |
The two Chinese nationals who were arrested last week for possession of rhino horns worth more than N$400 000 appeared in court yesterday and their case was postponed to next month. Yonghui Lu (41) and Nan Chen (29) made their first court appearance before the Windhoek Magistrate Court yesterday. The two Chinese nationals appeared on charges of possession of and dealing in controlled wildlife products. The case was postponed to 13 February for a formal bail hearing.
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NAM_2017-01_Chinese in court over rhino horns_Namibian Sun.pdf | 82.54 KB |
The Chinese national, who smuggled 18 rhino horns through the Hosea Kutako International Airport and was arrested at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, has pleaded guilty to all charges against him. Ye Zhiwei, 28, appeared in the Kempton Park Magistrate's Court in South Africa this week for dealing in rhino horn under the Endangered Species Act and will appear on 10 February again for sentencing.
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NAM_2017-01_Chinese with 18 rhino horns pleads guilty_Namibian Sun.pdf | 68.8 KB |
Four rhinos, including a prized bull, were shot on private land near Gobabis, however, the poachers only got away with the horns of two.
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NAM_2016-12_Four rhinos butchered at Gobabis_Namibian Sun.pdf | 155.5 KB |
Local environmentalists warn Chinese nationals. About 40 environmental organisations have issued a stern warning to Chinese nationals involved in criminal activities in the country.
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NAM_2016-12_Stop poaching now_Namibian Sun.pdf | 93.17 KB |
A shootout in Bwabwata National Park has left one poacher dead with three that got away and the public is warned they are armed and dangerous. A poacher was on Monday fatally shot during crossfire between an anti-poaching unit and a group of poachers in the Bwabwata National Park.
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NAM_2016-12_Elephant poacher shot dead_Namibian Sun.pdf | 120.67 KB |
Elephant and rhino poached, poachers arrested. In what marks a bloody few days for Namibia's wildlife, authorities have scored some major successes with busts and arrests.
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NAM_2016-12_Bloody few days for our wildlife_Namibian Sun.pdf | 88.89 KB |
Two Chinese nationals who were caught at the roadblock to the Hosea Kutako International Airport with pieces of elephant tusk will appear in court today. The two were arrested at the Kapps Farm roadblock on Wednesday afternoon when alert police officials searched their vehicle. According to the spokesperson of the Namibian police, Deputy Commissioner Edwin Kanguatjivi the two men were arrested between 12:00 and 14:00 at the roadblock.
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NAM_2016-12_Chinese bust with ivory will appear today_Namibian Sun.pdf | 89.04 KB |
A sergeant in the Namibian police has been arrested in connection with a case in which a Chinese national was arrested with 18 rhino horns at the OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg last week. Sergeant Pendapala Abraham Iitula,42, who worked at Hosea Kutako International Airport, appeared before the Windhoek Magistrate’s Court in Katutura yesterday on a charge of defeating and obstructing the course of justice.
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NAM_2016-12_Airport cop arrested in rhino horn case_Namibian Sun.pdf | 79.02 KB |
Full-scale investigations have been launched into activities at the Hosea Kutako International Airport after it was determined that the 18 rhino horns that a Chinese national was found in possession of in Johannesburg, were detected by scanners at Hosea Kutako International Airport. However, even though the scanners detected the rhino horns in the luggage of Ye ZhiWe, 28, who was in transit from Windhoek to Hong Kong, he was still allowed to board a South African Airways flight bound for Johannesburg.
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NAM_2016-11_Rhino horns_Heads will roll_Namibian Sun.pdf | 94.38 KB |
A Chinese national in transit from Windhoek to Hong Kong was arrested with 18 rhino horns at the OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Wednesday afternoon. Namibian Police spokesperson Edwin Kanguatjivi yesterday confirmed that the 28-year-old Chinese man was arrested in South Africa after he departed from Hosea Kutako International Airport on Wednesday morning at 06:40.
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NAM_2016-11_Chinese man caught with 18 rhino horns_Namibian Sun.pdf | 86.53 KB |
The State has asked that the four Chinese men found guilty of trying to smuggle 14 rhino horns and a leopard skin from Namibia should be sentenced to six years in prison.
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NAM_2016-09_State wants 6 years for Chinese smugglers_Namibian Sun.pdf | 90.88 KB |
The evidence of the Chinese nationals who were arrested in Namibia’s biggest rhino horn smuggling case to date, was rejected by Magistrate Alexis Diergaardt as false and they were found guilty of the possession and export of controlled wildlife products. The landmark case, which has been dragging on for more than two years, finally came to an end on Friday when Diergaardt made her judgment at the Windhoek Regional Court in Katutura finding the four Chinese nationals guilty on two of the three counts they were charged with. Diergaardt said that she found the four men…
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NAM_2016-09_Chinese rhino smugglers guilty_Namibian Sun.pdf | 83.32 KB |
Seven alleged rhino poachers were refused bail last week in the Omararu Magistrate's Court following protests and petitions by the community against their release.
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NAM_2016-08_No bail for suspected poachers_Namibian Sun.pdf | 100.57 KB |