Poaching syndicates are recruiting vulnerable villagers in Zimbabwe's animal corridors to kill animals such as elephants for their ivory, and to find markets, even on the streets, it has emerged. Police in areas such as Hwange, Kamativi and Victoria Falls in Matabeleland North have in recent months arrested people found trying to sell pieces of ivory on the streets. Conservationists say most of the locals arrested are people that were exploited by cunning syndicates, including some run by Zambian nationals, and they often lacked knowledge about wildlife crimes. According to court records gleaned by The Standard, 14 people were arrested in Matabeleland in northern Zimbabwe after they were caught with ivory between January and June this year. The figure was a huge jump from last year's arrests as only 19 people were caged for possession of ivory throughout 2021. Most of those arrested are said to be poor villagers recruited by the syndicates with some conservationists insisting that the masterminds of the poaching syndicates targeting the region's game reserves were rarely accounted for by law enforcement agents.