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 group of private game farmers, Help our Rhino Now Namibia (HoRN.nam), is offering a reward of N$100 000 for information leading to the arrest of poachers who shot a rhino at a farm near Windhoek. HoRN.nam said in a media statement on Wednesday that rhino poaching has escalated in Namibia over the past 18 months. The organisation says this poses a real and critical threat to the well-being and future survival of Namibian rhino populations.
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NAM_2023_02_Reward offered for arrest of rhino poachers_The Namibian.pdf | 241.03 KB |
Poaching syndicates have resurfaced at the Sentinel-Limpopo Safaris, about 78km west of Beitbridge Town where they are wantonly killing wild animals and derailing efforts of revamping the tourism industry after a Covid-19 hiatus. In some instances, they are unselectively killing even pregnant game and use donkeys as means of transport. It is also understood that the continued poaching activities have become a threat to tourism within the Greater Mapungubwe Transfrontier Conversation Area (TFCA). The mega safari land is jointly owned by Zimbabwe, South Africa and Botswana.
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ZIM_2023_01_Poaching syndicates descend on safari_Zimbabwe Situation.pdf | 410.87 KB |
The Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism says 63 rhinos have been poached since January this year.
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NAM_2022_11_63 rhinos poached so far this year_The Namibian.pdf | 279.7 KB |
Six people were arrested for rhino poaching, and one suspect for being in possession of a pangolin skin, states the report.
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NAM_2022_11_Seven arrested for wildlife crime in one week_The Namibian.pdf | 278.67 KB |
The minister of environment, forestry and tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, says 36 people have been arrested for rhino-related cases this year alone. Shifeta was speaking at the handover of 10 vehicles, park management and law enforcement equipment funded by the Integrated National Park Management II (NamParks V and Covid-19 Fund) and Integrated Wildlife Protection projects in Windhoek on Wednesday. According to Shifeta, it is of great concern that 55 rhinos have been poached to date this year. "This is compared to 44 rhinos poached in 2021.
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NAM_2022_10_Rhino poaching cases on the rise_The Namibian.pdf | 537.99 KB |
The preacher and admitted rhinoceros poacher Jackson Babi is facing a prison term of at least 10 years, which would increase to 27 years if he does not pay fines also imposed on him, after pleading guilty on 11 criminal charges in the Gobabis Regional Court.
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NAM_2022_09_Heavy sentence as preacher admits rhino poaching_The Namibian.pdf | 878.5 KB |
Two male suspects were arrested on Thursday in connection with the poaching of 11 rhinos in Etosha National Park. This was confirmed by the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism spokesperson, Romeo Muyunda. "They were arrested yesterday and, at this stage, no further information can be given as investigations are still premature," Muyunda said. Earlier this week, the ministry issued a statement saying the carcasses were discovered during ongoing operations in Etosha National Park. The carcasses are suspected to be three weeks and older, according to the report.
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NAM_2022_06_Two arrested for suspected rhino poaching_The Namibian.pdf | 232.53 KB |
Two elephants are suspected to have been killed by poisoning by poachers after they were found dead in the Sentinel Safaris area which is part of Zimbabwe’s component of the Greater Mapungubwe Trans-frontier Conservation Area (GMTCA). The mega-park is made up of communal lands and national parks from Botswana, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.
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ZIM_2022_05_Two Zimbabwe elephants poisoned by poachers_The Chronicle.pdf | 583.4 KB |
A 71-year-old man was arrested after allegedly being found in possession of four elephant tusks on Thursday. According to the police, the man was arrested at Nonidas River Plots at Swakopmund.
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NAM_2021_12_Man arrested over elephant tusks_The Namibian.pdf | 1.03 MB |
A wildlife nature reserve covering Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Angola will undertake a loose elephant census next year at the cost of $3 million. The aerial survey by the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA) directorate will help in managing elephants that freely roam across member states. "The elephant population of KAZA represents more than 50% of the remaining savanna elephants (Loxodonta Africana) found in Africa, a species recently listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as globally endangered.
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SA_2021_11_Census to shed light on elephant population in southern Africa_News24.pdf | 327.21 KB |
A 35-year-old Zimbabwean and a Chinese man (28) who were recently arrested by South Africa's organised crime unit, the Hawks for illegal possession of dried Abalone worth nearly R10 million are set to make a formal bail application tomorrow at the Atlantis Magistrates' Court, in Western Cape province . Lawrence Muroma and Qing Quan Feng were found in possession of 70 boxes dried abalone on May 16.
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ZIM_2021_06_R10m Abalone deal_Bail application date set_The Herald.pdf | 367.74 KB |
A suspected poacher was killed while his accomplice escaped following a shootout with game rangers on Wednesday at Bubye Valley Conservancy, some 60km west of Beitbridge town. The two men allegedly killed a male lion, before rangers caught up with them while in the process of killing a black rhinoceros.
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BOT_2020-04_Poacher shot dead In shootout _ the Chronicle.pdf | 170.68 KB |
I am part of the public voice bidding that the three Chinese men found with 14 rhino horn in their bags – at Hosea Kutako airport (well done, Security!) – must remain in prison without bail. Thus far, I feel and believe that the judge has made the right decision in keeping them there.
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NAM_2014-05_Dont Hand our Legacy to Chinese_The Namibian.pdf | 296.47 KB |
Nine men were arrested within six days in connection with the possession of the carcasses of wild animals, live pangolins, and a python skin.
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NAM_2021_10_Nine men arrested for wildlife crime in one week_The Namibian.pdf | 275.97 KB |