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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 - 16 of 16
Wednesday, 22 January 2025
Herbst J 2025. 15 accused of rhino poaching-linked financial crimes appear in Mbombela court.

Fifteen people accused of financial crimes related to rhino poaching briefly appeared in the Nelspruit Commercial Crimes Court on Monday. Among the accused were two former field rangers and some of their relatives. While the majority of the respondents appear to be from a humble background, almost all of them are represented by private advocates. Although the State was ready to commence with trial proceedings, the matter was provisionally postponed to February 27 for possible pretrial conference.

Friday, 17 January 2025
Herbst J 2025. Transcripts missing in alleged rhino poaching kingpin Joseph Nyalungu’s trial.

Four days of court transcriptions seem be missing in the trial of alleged rhino poaching kingpin Joseph Nyalungu and his three remaining co-accused, Claude Lubisi, Aretha Mhlanga and Rachel Qwebana. This emerged as the quartet of former police officers briefly appeared in the Mpumalanga High Court this morning, January 17. Their appearance follows a postponement late last year to settle financial instructions in a trial that commenced more than three years ago, in September 2021.

Friday, 10 January 2025
Herbst J 2025. Festive season a bloodbath for Kruger rhinos.

While visitors to the Kruger Park were enjoying their peaceful festive season bush breaks, poachers were quietly mowing down rhinos within the Intensive Protection Zone. A staggering 27% of all rhinos poached in the Kruger National Park last year is understood to have been slaughtered in December. Three of these were slaughtered for their horns around Christmas, and another at New Year’s Eve, leaving two young calves orphaned.

Wednesday, 26 June 2024
Musoke R 2024. From bush to butchery: The game meat value chain in northern Tanzania.

Tanzania is home to wild herds of buffalo, wildebeest, hartebeest, and impala that have been hunted for meat by generations of indigenous communities. In 2019, Tanzania’s late President called on the country’s authorities to establish a mechanism that will allow Tanzania's to access wild meat, counter rampant poaching and illegal bushmeat trade through a pioneering set of national laws. By early 2020, the Game Meat Selling Regulations (GMSR) - new legislation for the legal sourcing, selling, and consumption of wild meat - had come into force.

Monday, 24 June 2024
Musoke R 2024. Greatest elephant, pangolin massacre.

In January 2019, the arrest and imminent prosecution of several Vietnamese wildlife traffickers in Kampala excited wildlife conservationists in Uganda and abroad who saw it as an opportunity to disrupt a cartel that had been growing and widening in eastern Africa over two decades. But, the conservationists' excitement soon turned to despair, if not disappointment as they watched the case get smothered and eventually dismissed from Uganda's Anti-Corruption Court, reports Ronald Musoke. Five years on, there are more unanswered questions as to why this case collapsed.

Friday, 14 June 2024
Musoke R 2024. Wildlife warden decries rise in poaching.

A wildlife warden on Wednesday raised alarm over the increase in poaching and the cutting down of trees at the Badingilo National Park. Speaking to reporters at the park, acting Warden, Maj. Butrus Simon, said the killing of the wildlife and deforestation have been exacerbated by the economic hardship in the country. "The poaching activities inside the park are due to the current situation. You will find that many poachers kill the animals and cut the trees," Simon said.

Wednesday, 10 January 2024
Bause T 2024. Beweerde stropery in Namib-Naukluft.

Die 49-jarige Leon Schiffer het Maandag in die landdroshof op Maltahöhe verskyn. Hy word van stropery in die Namib-Naukluft Nasionale Park (in die Sesriem-distrik) aangekla. Luidens verlede naweek se polisieverslag is Schiffer op 5 Januarie omstreeks 10:00 saam met nog 'n verdagte (32) in hegtenis geneem - volgens inligting van die landdroskantoor in Maltahöhe was dit 'n sekere "Gariseb". Die twee het glo nege gemsbokke gestroop.

Friday, 5 January 2024
Bause T 2024. Venasha, die renoster blom.

Dit gaan baie goed met Venasha, die renosterkalfie wat in Oktober 2022 by die Rhino Momma-projek aangekom het, nadat sy deur haar ma verwerp is. Volgens Juliette Erdtsieck, haar versorger van die afgelope 19 maande, bly Venasha onder meer saam met drie renosterkoeie en hul kalwers in 'n kamp. "Sy word nou regtig baie groot en is 'n regte renoster! Sy het op 26 November haar laaste bottel melk gekry en aan die einde van die jaar is sy na die groot kamp verskuif," sê Juliette. Die Rhino Momma-projek in Namibië het in 2022 in een maand twee wees-renosterkalfies gekry.

Wednesday, 20 December 2023
Bause T 2023. Tanzanier van handel in plante aangekla.

’n Tanzaniese burger wat glo 'n meesterbrein in die handel van plante is en haar drie Namibiese medebeskuldigdes verskyn Donderdag in die Opuwo-landdroshof vir die onwettige oes van Olifantvoet. Die 29-jarige Diana Mushiku van Tanzanië, Veisiruaije Tjavara (25), Jenniter Simataa (37) en Tjivinda Unatavi (31) is tussen 21 Oktober en 10 November in Okondjombu in die Puros-omgewing in die Kunenestreek in hegtenis geneem met 46 Adenia pechuelii-plante, beter bekend as Olifantvoet, wat hulle na bewering sonder 'n permit geoes het.

Tuesday, 21 November 2023
Bause T 2023. Hired car used in poaching, stock theft.

The two suspects were caught in the early hours of Friday morning with five goats in their possession which had been poached. The men also poached two kudus, two waterbucks and a gemsbok worth N$35 000 in the Khomas Region.

Wednesday, 23 August 2023
Reiter C, Bause T 2023. Umweltministerium ist besorgt.

Das Ministerium für Umwelt, Forstwirtschaft und Tourismus ist laut einer Pressemitteilung
besorgt über die zunehmende Verwendung von Drahtschlingen zur illegalen Jagd und Tötung
von Wildtieren im Park. Der Pressesprecher des Ministeriums, Romeo Muyunda, erklärte: "Wir
möchten betonen, dass die Beseitigung von Schlingen zu unseren täglichen Aufgaben im
Rahmen der Parkverwaltung gehört. Es wird vermutet, dass einige Gemeindemitglieder, die sich
im Nationalpark aufhalten, Schlingen aufstellen, um Wildtiere zu jagen und zu töten." In Etoscha

Wednesday, 23 August 2023
Bause T 2023. Al meer strikke in Etosha gestel.

"Ons kan nie die mense verwyder nie; hulle is deel van die park. Ons moet net kyk hoe ons kan verseker dat hulle die reëls nakom.

Friday, 21 July 2023
Smit E, Bause T 2023. Trae hofprosesse knou stryd teen wildstropery.

Statistiek toon altesaam 404 verdagtes is verlede jaar in verband met wildstropery vir vleis in hegtenis geneem, terwyl 89 verdagtes skuldig bevind is.

Statistics show a total of 404 suspects were arrested last year in connection with poaching for meat, while 89 suspects were found guilty.

Tuesday, 9 May 2023
Smit E, Bause T 2023. Vyftien renosters vanjaar gestroop.

Altesaam 15 renosters is vanjaar gestroop, teenoor 87 in 2022 en 45 in 2021. Die laaste renoster is tussen 1 en 28 April op 'n private plaas in die Grootfontein-omgewing gestroop. Die karkas is eers verlede week ontdek en die ondersoek dui daarop dat die dier twee keer met 'n jaggeweer geskiet is.

Tuesday, 29 March 2022
Bause T 2022. Draadstrikke aan die toeneem.

Volgens dr. Ulf Tubbesing het sy span in die laaste twee jaar vyf vlakvarke van draadstrikke bevry.

According to dr. Ulf Tubbesing, his team has freed five warthogs from wire traps in the last two years.

Wednesday, 6 May 2020
Bause T 2020. Vyf gemsbokke die naweek gestroop.

Sestien vermeende stropers in hegtenis geneem. Die Namibiese polisie het ná ’n jaagtog van ongeveer 70 km op ’n grondpad drie mans in hegtenis geneem en op vier gemsbokkarkasse, ’n bakkie, twee jaggewere, messe en ’n byl beslag gelê.

Namibia police have arrested three men on a gravel road for about 70km and seized four deer carcasses, a pickup truck, two hunting rifles, knives and an ax.

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