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A pregnant rhino has been shot dead and dehorned by poachers on a game reserve near Alexandria. The incident comes as a gruesome reminder of the rhino poaching scourge, which has been relatively quiet in the Eastern Cape in the past six months but continues to threaten the survival of the species. We will update with more information once it becomes available. The only info circulating at the moment is currently behind a pay wall, which we don't have access to.

South Africa: Great team work guys. Live pangolin saved from the illegal trade - disgraceful that 2 cops were among the suspects arrested! In an intelligence driven operation yesterday, 4 suspects were arrested at Makro Wonderboom, Pretoria, 2 were SAPS police officers, 2 x 9mm pistols retrieved. Outstanding work from SAPS Cullinan stock theft and Endangered species, SAPS Silverton K9 and support from US Homeland Security

EAGLE Côte d'Ivoire - 2 traffickers arrested with 32kg ivory. The ivory, concealed in a rice sack, was trafficked from Liberia. The Burkina Faso National trafficker denounced the other for being a known big ivory trafficker.

Rhino poaching in Africa drops to lowest level since 2011, but total rhino numbers decline 6.7%, with white rhinos at near two-decade low. Asian rhinos stable, but Critically Endangered species in Indonesia face extinction. Illegal rhino horn trade remains global threat: 1.8 tonnes seized in three years (approx. 716 whole horns), with South Africa, home to the largest rhino populations, continuing to be most affected.

This comprehensive tool provides a summary of the Philippine Anti-money Laundering (AML) legal framework and practical guidance on basic financial investigations, evidence gathering and case development. Wildlife crimes are motivated by money, and most involve transactions with indelible records in financial systems. Financial investigation can be used to provide intelligence and evidence of criminality and support confiscation of assets.

Zimbabwe Police has arrested one Cong Yanzhong from China for possession of 3 rhino horns worth US$240 000 and 4 pieces of raw ivory weighing 36kgs . The Chinese national appeared in court and was remanded in custody to 22 July 2025 for trial.

Another rhino was sadly killed at a private game reserve in the Pongola area on Thursday evening. The rhino bull was found dead, but this time around, the horns were still intact. Police suspect that the poachers may have only wounded the animal and it ran away to die somewhere else. Rangers found the rhino on Friday morning and contacted the police. Last week was full moon, oddly enough known as 'Poacher’s Moon'. There is also a known link between rhino poaching and the full moon, which is that anti-poaching teams actively monitor on these nights.

The National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) has warned that little to no progress has been made in shutting down South Africa's captive lion breeding industry, despite a series of government commitments and legal recommendations. During a briefing to the portfolio committee on environment, forestry and fisheries on Tuesday, National Chief Inspector Douglas Wolhuter said that "nothing has changed" - highlighting ongoing welfare violations and a continued lack of enforcement, despite a government-backed plan to phase out lion farming.

The report, produced under a Service Contract with the European Commission, provides an in-depth analysis of illegal wildlife trade trends based on seizures reported by EU Member States to Europe Trade in Wildlife Information eXchange (EU-TWIX) system. The illegal trade in wild species is a critical threat to biodiversity; valued at a staggering $23bn each year, it devastates ecosystems and fuels crime.

The police in Skukuza have arrested two male Mozambican nationals, aged 29 and 38, for possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition, as well as for trespassing in the Houtboschrand Ranger area in the Kruger National Park (KNP). The men were arrested on Thursday, May 8.

An anti-poaching K9 Camp was officially opened at the Mdluli Safari Lodge in the Kruger National Park (KNP) on Tuesday, April 23.The camp, whose opening coincided with International Earth Day 2025, will be a base of operations for rangers and their well-trained dogs, working together in the fight against poaching in the KNP. The executive manager of Mdluli Safari Lodge, Chris Schalkwyk, said the establishment of the special K9 Camp proves that with good relationships and local and international co-operation, a huge difference can be made in conservation.

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.

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.

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.

The trial is set to begin this September, close to three years after the 50 pieces of horns were seized not far from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. The men sprung a surprise in court today when they opted for a trial. It was a reversal of the guilty plea they had recorded at an earlier court appearance last month. Media and conservation groups gathered at court on Wednesday (24 April) had expected a penalty to be given to the two men.

Environmental ministers from Nigeria and Cameroon have made conservation history by signing a highly-anticipated Memorandum of Understanding to address the illegal trade in wild species. Cameroon and Nigeria's shared border has been routinely exploited by wildlife traffickers who target both local and migratory species. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), as well as extensive TRAFFIC investigations, have identified each country as both major sources and transit hubs for the global illegal trade in wild species.

Commercial and subsistence poaching in protected areas is on the rise. The extent of loss sustained by Namibia on account of the Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) is not reliably quantified (Anon., 2017). Wildlife populations for some of Namibia’s most iconic species - African Elephant Loxodonta africana, and Black Rhinoceros Diceros bicornis - are currently under threat due to IWT, and increased poaching in recent years is damaging their otherwise healthy populations.

Wildlife and environmental crimes, like most crimes, are motivated by money Almost all will involve a transaction or purchase before, during or after the crime even if it is not directly related to the commission of the crime. These transactions leave an indelible record in financial systems that investigators can use. Financial investigation can be used to provide intelligence and evidence of criminality such as identity, properties, vehicles, lifestyle and movements of offenders, co-conspirators, and victims.

This document summarizes TRAFFIC's comprehensive overview of events and dynamics currently driving an escalating illicit trade in rhino horns from South Africa to Viet Nam. Whilst it is recognized that there are other dimensions to the rhino horn trade within Africa and in Asia, this examination of the two principal countries serves to bring into focus many prominent characteristics of a still unfolding wildlife trade crisis of global importance.