The deep, guttural grunts that once characterized the Shamvura section of the Kavango gradually fall silent and give way to an eerie silence. What was once a thriving sanctuary is now being transformed into a cemetery as a local extinction takes place in real time. In just twelve months, a stable population of 187 hippos has been decimated to just 47. This 75% collapse is not a tragedy of nature, but a calculated massacre, fueled by a deadly combination of toothless Angolan legislation and a brazen commercial meat trade conducted in broad daylight. The crisis has its roots in a devastating legal vacuum. While Namibian conservationists and private operators of Shamvura Camp and Okacuito ask for intervention, they are fighting a war against an invisible enemy protected by the border. Deputy Police Commissioner Bonifatius Kanyetu, coordinator for crime in Kavango East, identifies the poor laws for the protection of wildlife in Angola as the main cause. In Angola, environmental protection is often described as virtually non-existent or dangerously lax. This legal fragility has made the northern riverbank a safe haven for syndicates. Poachers can stay on Angolan soil, shoot into Namibian waters with military weapons, and then retreat to a system where the risk of prosecution is negligible compared to the financial gain. Even when prosecutions do take place, the lack of deterrent penalties means that poaching remains a highly profitable and low-risk business for many.