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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.

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Displaying results 1 - 6 of 6
Tuesday, 24 May 2022
2022. Nine suspects arrested for possession of a pangolin valued at R250 000.

Midrand police arrested nine suspects on May 19 on New Road, Midrand after they were found with a female pangolin weighing 0.9kg valued at R250 000.

Thursday, 7 October 2021
2021. Nigeria - pangolin poaching.

The Nation in August reported the arrest of three Guineans and a Nigerian, and the recovery of N22 billion worth of pangolin scales, claws and elephant tusks from the suspects. Addressing reporters at the Customs Training School, Ikeja, where the seized items were displayed, National Public Relations Officer of the NCS, Deputy Controller Joseph Attah, said experts from the Federal Ministry of Environment, Department of Forestry, would conduct a DNA test on the pangolin scales to know the country where the animals were killed.

Monday, 4 October 2021
Adenubi T 2021. Nigeria - huge haul of pangolin scales.

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has said that its officers have again, for the second time in two months, intercepted a huge catche of Pangolin scale worth N1.7billion in Lagos. This is even as the NCS revealed that findings have indicated that Nigeria is a conduit pipe being used by a yet to be identified international cartel in this illegal trade. Recall that the NCS in August had intercepted a huge catche of Pangolin scales worth N22billion in Lagos.

Tuesday, 4 May 2021
2021. Mozambique - five detained for possession of ivory, lion teeth, leopard skin and pangolin skeleton.

Five Mozambican citizens were detained by the National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC) in Tete city and Chitima, a village in Cahora-Bassa district, on Monday, having being found in possession of 11 elephant tusks, lions’ teeth, a leopard skin and a pangolin skeleton.

Friday, 22 January 2021
Mukpo A 2021. Nigeria and Congo becoming major hubs for ivory and pangolin smuggling.

Increased political buy-in for law enforcement and interdiction efforts at ports in East Africa have pushed wildlife smuggling westward to Nigeria. Between 1998 and 2014, the top two countries associated with ivory seizures were Tanzania and Kenya. Since 2014, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo have overtaken them. Corruption at the ports, the involvement of influential politicians, and rural poverty make Nigeria an aractive waypoint for smugglers.

Thursday, 4 June 2020
Braczkowski A 2020. South Africa - effort to return threatened pangolins to the wild at Phinda.

Each year in South Africa the African Pangolin Working Group (APWG) retrieves between 20 and 40 pangolins through intelligence operations with security forces. These pangolins are often-traumatised and injured and are admitted to the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital for extensive medical treatment and rehabilitation before they can be considered for release. In 2019, seven rescued Temminck’s pangolins were reintroduced into South Africa’s Phinda Private Game Reserve in the KwaZulu Natal Province. Nine months on, five have survived.

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