This archive of published media articles about wildlife crime in Namibia aims to:
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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The Skukuza Regional Court in Mpumalanga sentenced 35-year-old Mozambican national Thomas Yingwana to nine years imprisonment for hunting in the Kruger National Park. Police spokesperson in Mpumalanga, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala said Yingwana had illegally entered South Africa last year. "The court heard how in November 2022, the accused entered the park before he was caught.
Ten convicted abalone poachers, five of them employed by the Department Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) at the time of their arrest, were handed hefty sentences in the Western Cape High Court.
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SA_2023_08_Abalone poachers_including ex DFFE employees_jailed_IOL.pdf | 238.83 KB |
A man was arrested in the East Rand after being found in possession of a rhino horn worth an estimated R170,000. The Hawks, working in collaboration with the Benoni K9 Unit, stopped a suspicious Toyota Etios during a routine patrol along the R21 highway near Atlas Road. Upon searching the vehicle, officers discovered a 1.6-kilogram rhino horn concealed in a yellow plastic bag under the driver's seat. The driver, identified as 47-year-old Hlulani Baloyi, was arrested on the spot and subsequently appeared in the…
Durban - The IFP in KwaZulu-Natal said it was concerned about the rhino poaching incidents taking place in KZN and the Kruger National Park.
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SA_2023_08_IFP calls for urgent action to curb rhino poaching in KZN_Kruger_IOL.pdf | 409 KB |
Pretoria - The Hawks in Mpumalanga have arrested Martin Prince Lekhuleni, 37, and his sister Eunice Lekhuleni, 24, who were circulated by the elite crime fighting unit earlier this week as wanted individuals. The siblings, who were wanted on charges of money laundering in connection to payment of Kruger National Park field rangers in exchange for tactical information, handed themselves in to police.
Pretoria - Six people have been remanded in custody after they appeared before the Zeerust Magistrate's Court for possession of a pangolin.
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SA_2022_12_Pangolin in car_Six people remanded in custody for possession of caged animal_IOL.pdf | 349.99 KB |
Pretoria - Two men, Junior Chauke aged 49 and Prince Ntsako Letswele, aged 33 were remanded in custody by the Ermelo Magistrate’s Court after they were arrested for alleged possession of rhino horn. Hawks' spokesperson in Mpumalanga Captain Dineo Lucy Sekgotodi said the duo was arrested after police received information about a vehicle with the occupants in possession of firearms, reportedly driving towards Ermelo.
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SA_2022_12_Rhino horn in KFC bag_Two men in custody for carrying rhino horns worth R870 000_IOL.pdf | 382.41 KB |
Cape Town - Anti-rhino poaching activist Wayne Bolton has called for stronger collaborative action from the government amid concern over rising rhino poaching cases. According to Bolton, rhino poaching across Africa saw a significant decrease during strict Covid-19 lockdowns, but as the restrictions loosened, poachers intensified their onslaught on the species, with South Africa being hardest hit.
A 39-year-old man is expected to appear before the Calcutta Magistrate's Court in Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga, today after he was arrested by the Nelspruit Hawks Serious Organised Crime Investigation, the White River K9 Unit and Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Authority.
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SA_2022_12_Suspected poacher nabbed with two elephant tusks_IOL.pdf | 125.91 KB |