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Namibian Wildlife Crimes article archive

This archive of published media articles about wildlife crime in Namibia aims to:

  • provide easy public access to published information and statistics
  • enable easy stakeholder access to articles
  • provide a comprehensive archive of wildlife crime reporting in Namibia

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.

Displaying results 1 - 20 of 20
Monday, 27 November 2023
Kooper L 2023. Zambezi police make another elephant tusk bust.

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,

Tuesday, 9 May 2023
Kooper L 2023. Zambezi police searching for suspected hippo poachers at Kalimbeza.

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.

 

Tuesday, 11 April 2023
Maclennan S 2023. Convicted rhino poacher arrested at private game reserve.

Police have confirmed the arrest of one of the five convicted rhino poachers who escaped from prison in Makhanda in October last year. "We can confirm the arrest and that he was involved in attempted poaching at one of the private game reserves," South African Police Service spokesperson Warrant Officer Majola Nkohli told talk of the Town. Seven men escaped from Grahamstown Correctional Facility in October 2022. One of them, convicted poacher Trymore Chauke was arrested at Seven Fountains around 7pm on Sunday 23 October.

Friday, 7 April 2023
Maclennan S 2023. Bitter twist to new double Sibuya rhino killings.

'An incredible story of courage and survival that has now been obliterated' is how wildlife veterinarian Dr William Fowlds has described the killing this week of two orphaned survivors of a 2016 rhino poaching incident at Sibuya Game Reserve. In a bitter blow to the rhino conservation community, two rhinos who mothers were killed by poachers seven years ago were themselves killed by poachers on Tuesday April 4.

Monday, 13 March 2023
Kooper L 2023. Two hippos poached at Muyako, Zambezi.

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.

Friday, 4 November 2022
Maclennan S 2022. Poachers' sentencing to be postponed.

The sentencing of six rhino poachers convicted in the Makhanda High Court just over a month ago will be postponed until four of them who escaped from prison are traced. Francis Chitiyo, Trymore Chauke, Simba Masinge , Nhamo Muyambo, and Abraham Moyane and Misheck Chauke were convicted for conspiracy to poach rhinos in the Makhanda High Court on 30 September 2022. They were due to be sentenced on Friday 4 November. Five of them escaped from the Waainek correctional facility in Makhanda in the early hours of 18 October, together with two other prisoners.

Friday, 22 October 2021
Kooper L 2021. Elephant conservation efforts yield results, Shifeta.

Environment, forestry and tourism minister Pohamba Shifeta has revealed that Namibia's elephant population has grown to an estimated 23 736 since independence.

Wednesday, 3 March 2021
Kooper L 2021. Suspected poaching syndicate member denied bail.

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.

Monday, 1 March 2021
Kooper L 2021. Man arrested for alleged illegal possession of lechwe carcasses.

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.

Tuesday, 25 August 2020
Kooper L 2020. Zambian nabbed for ivory, pangolin scales.

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.

Friday, 13 March 2020
Maclennan S 2020. Poaching trial to resume in May.

The trial of six men facing rhino-poaching charges continued in the Grahamstown High Court this week. East London residents Francis Chitiyo, Trymore Chauke, Misheck Chauke, Simba Masinge and Nhamo Muyambo, and  Abraham Moyane were arrested in July 2018 during Operation Full Moon – the Eastern Cape Rhino Task Team’s code name for its anti-poaching operations. All six have since been in custody. They are accused on four counts.

Thursday, 15 August 2019
Kooper L 2019. Man nabbed for possession of elephant tusk, rhino horn .

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.

Wednesday, 17 July 2019
Kooper L 2019. Two suspected poachers arrested in Zambezi region again.

Two men were arrested at Katima Mulilo in the Zambezi region on Wednesday after they were found in possession of four elephant tusks.

Tuesday, 16 July 2019
Kooper L 2019. Suspected poachers arrested in Zambezi region.

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.

Friday, 3 May 2019
Kooper L 2019. Man denied bail for possession of six elephant tusks.

A man was denied bail on a charge of possession of six elephant tusks yesterday in the Katima Mulilo Magistrate's Court.

Monday, 25 March 2019
Kooper L 2019. Six in for possession of tusks, zebra skin.

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.

Monday, 14 January 2019
Kooper L 2014. Two suspected zebra poachers arrested.

Two suspected poachers were arrested on Friday in the Zambezi region for being in possession of zebra meat without a permit.

Wednesday, 18 April 2018
Kooper L 2018. Suspected poacher killed by police.

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.

Wednesday, 10 January 2018
Kooper L 2018. Five suspected poachers denied bail.

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.

Monday, 8 January 2018
Kooper L 2018. Five suspected poachers arrested in Zambezi.

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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