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.
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A now 51 year old Czech who was found trying to smuggle 85 geckos, two snakes and two scorpions from Namibia into the EU via the Vienna Airport on the 23rd of May 2023 has been charged and fined 4000 Euros by a court in Austria (no date given) and all animals forfeited to the state. This was confirmed by the Head Public Relations Official of the Austrian Ministry of Finance, Steffan Trittner, after inquiring via e-mail a month ago. No further details were given because of "protection of data privacy".
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NAM_2024_04_Smuggler fined €4000_Facebook.pdf | 540.1 KB |
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Update on the elephant and rhino poaching in namibia.pdf | 344.51 KB |
Zambezi regional police arrested two Zambian nationals for possession of 15 elephant tusks in the Kapani area of the Linyanti constituency on Sunday. The two Zambian nationals, aged 29 and 32, were part of a group of seven, however,
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NAM_2023_11_Zambezi police make another elephant tusk bust_The Namibian.pdf | 115.95 KB |
The Zambezi regional police need the public's assistance to arrest the suspects behind the killing of a hippopotamus, valued at N$100 000. Speaking to The Namibian on Tuesday, police regional spokesperson inspector Kisco Sitali said they are investigating a case of hunting of a specially protected animal in the Sikunga conservancy, after a dead hippo was found floating in the Zambezi River near Mubala Lodge around 10H00 on Friday.
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NAM_2023_05_Zambezi police searching for suspected hippo poachers at Kalimbeza_The Namibian.pdf | 157.06 KB |
The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism has launched an investigation into the poaching of two hippos in the Muyako area of the Zambezi region. This comes after the carcass of a hippo was on Sunday found by community members, who then alerted ministry officials Ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda on Monday said it is suspected that the hippo died as a result of a bullet wound, and that it was shot on Saturday night. He said this was the second hippo killed in the same way in the area this year, with the first incident reported in February.
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NAM_2023_03_Two hippos poached at Muyako_Zambezi_The Namibian.pdf | 299.15 KB |
Environment, forestry and tourism minister Pohamba Shifeta has revealed that Namibia's elephant population has grown to an estimated 23 736 since independence.
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NAM_2021_10_Elephant conservation efforts yield results Shifeta_The Namibian.pdf | 616.78 KB |
At least 369 alleged poachers have been arrested in the last nine months, the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism says. "Of these cases, 100 are related to pangolin poaching and trafficking, 64 to elephant poaching and trafficking, while 113 are related to rhino poaching and trafficking," ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda says. Over the last five years, elephant poaching has declined from 50 cases in 2017 to five thus far this year, while rhino poaching declined from 81 cases in 2018 to 14 this year. Ministry officials last week discovered two carcasses…
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NAM_2021_10_Poaching_ 369 arrests in nine months_The Namibian.pdf | 705.31 KB |
Barks Sobozi (44) was arrested at Silonga after months of joint investigations by the Wildlife Protection Services (WPS) division of the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism, and the Namibian Defence Force. Sobozi is allegedly part of a transnational syndicate suspected of rhino poaching in the Botswana Delta.
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NAM_2021_03_Suspected poaching syndicate member denied bail_The Namibian.pdf | 1.01 MB |
A 59-year-old Namibian man was arrested on Friday for the alleged illegal possession of five lechwe carcasses in the Chikuzwe area of the Zambezi region. Zambezi's regional head of the police's protected resources unit, Morgan Saisai, told The Namibian today that after gathering intelligence, they set up a roadblock at Chikuzwe, which led to suspect's arrest.
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NAM_2021_03_Man arrested for alleged illegal possession of lechwe carcasses_The Namibian.pdf | 651.39 KB |
A twenty-year-old Zambian man was arrested on Sunday in the Zambezi region after he was found in possession of one elephant tusk and 81 pangolin scales.
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NAM_2020-08_Zambian nabbed for ivory_pangolin scales_The Namibian.pdf | 716.9 KB |
A 31-Year-old Zambian man was arrested yesterday arrested at Mukuyu village after he was found in possession of one elephant tusk and a rhino horn.
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NAM_2019-08_Man nabbed for possession of elephant tusk_rhino horn - The Namibian.pdf | 593.11 KB |
Two men were arrested at Katima Mulilo in the Zambezi region on Wednesday after they were found in possession of four elephant tusks.
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NAM_2019-07_Two suspected poachers arrested in Zambezi region again_The Namibian.pdf | 276.64 KB |
Two suspected poachers were arrested on Monday night after they were found in possession of a crocodile skin in Kongola area of the Zambezi region.
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NAM_2019-07_Suspected poachers arrested in Zambezi region_The Namibian.pdf | 354.33 KB |
A man was denied bail on a charge of possession of six elephant tusks yesterday in the Katima Mulilo Magistrate's Court.
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NAM_2019-05_Man denied bail for possession of six elephant tusks_The Namibian.pdf | 478.2 KB |
Six suspected poachers were arrested in Zambezi region after they were found in possession of four elephant tusks, two elephant tails and one zebra skin yesterday.
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NAM_2019-03_Six in for possession of tusks_zebra skin_The Namibian.pdf | 284.23 KB |
Two suspected poachers were arrested on Friday in the Zambezi region for being in possession of zebra meat without a permit.
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NAM_2019-01_Two suspected zebra poachers arrested_The Namibian.pdf | 505.17 KB |
Police in the Zambezi region are calling on community members who have a missing relative to come and identify the body of a suspected poacher who was killed during a chase over the weekend in the Bwabwata National Park. Zambezi regional police commissioner Karel Theron yesterday said the man was killed during a shoot-out between the police, members of the anti-poaching unit, and suspected poachers on Saturday.
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NAM_2018-04_Suspected poacher killed by police_The Namibian.pdf | 385.79 KB |
Five suspects who were arrested last week for being in possession of four elephant tusks were denied bail in the Katima Mulilo Magisitrate's Court on Monday.
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NAM_2018-01_Five suspected poachers denied bail_The Namibian.pdf | 350.32 KB |
The police in the Zambezi region have arrested four Namibians and one Zambian suspect after they were allegedly found in possession of four elephant tusks on Friday.
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NAM_2018-01_Five suspected poachers arrested in Zambezi_The Namibian.pdf | 353.32 KB |
Rhino crimes accounted for most arrests during the past year, with 145 suspects having been detained. A significant number of these were pre-emptive arrests, where suspects were caught before they could kill a rhino. This is not only a highly commendable law enforcement success, but also a very positive conservation outcome. Pre-emptive arrests have directly saved numerous rhinos and will allow the population to continue to multiply. The number of rhinos known to have been poached in Namibia during 2020 has decreased from the previous year.
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Combatting Wildlife Crime in Namibia_Annual Report 2020.pdf | 3.04 MB |