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.
Explore your search results using the filter checkboxes, or amend your search or start a new search.
The Nigerian government says it will not relent in its efforts in the fight against wildlife crime in the country. Nigeria's Minister of State for Environment Dr Iziaq Salako stated this at the "public unveiling of an elephant sculpture constructed from the pulverized Wildlife stockpile” held in Abuja, Nigeria's capital. He said that the government would be resolute in enforcing laws and upscale the deployment of technology in fighting wildlife criminals. "I must warn that those engaged in the crime of illegal wildlife trade are very tenacious and do not give up easily.
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NIG_2024_08_Nigeria restates commitment to end wildlife crimes_Voice of Nigeria.pdf | 74.78 KB |
The Minister of Environment, Balarabe Lawal, says there is a need for capacity building in the judiciary for effective prosecution of wildlife crimes. The minister noted that Nigerian wildlife was being threatened by poachers, with some wild animals, including elephants, facing extinction threats. Lawal said this when he appeared as a guest on an episode of Unfiltered: The Big Interview, monitored by our correspondent. He said, "The forest is now becoming homes for criminals, insurgents and poachers who kill endangered animals like elephants.
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NIG_2024_07_Judges need training in handling wildlife crimes_Minister_Punch Newspaper.pdf | 112.45 KB |
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CHINA_2024_07_China Fortifies Anti_Wildlife Trafficking Efforts at its Borders_traffic.pdf | 166.51 KB |
Two suspected poachers were at the weekend arrested while in possession of six pieces of elephant tusks in Tigania East, Meru county. They had wrapped the tusks weighing 18.5 kilos in four sacks when police and Kenya Wildlife Service officials intercepted them. Police said the two were nabbed at Muriamburi Junction Mulika area on July 18, as they transported the same to a potential buyer aboard a motorcycle. The suspects will be charged with being in possession of wildlife trophies of endangered species, contrary to Section 92(4) of the Wildlife Conservation Management Act 2013…
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KEN_2024_07_Two arrested with Sh1_9 million elephant tusks in Tigania_The Star.pdf | 619.29 KB |
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KEN_2024_07_3 Policemen amongst four found with 29 kg Ivory_Seej_Africa.pdf | 173.31 KB |
The ongoing drought that has its grip on most parts of Namibia has not spared wildlife either, the environment ministry says. The drought is also severely impacting conservation efforts, but has not yet led to increased mortalities, reduction of wildlife numbers or any endangered species, environment ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda stated. While responding to questions by New Era, revealed the scarcity of rainfall in the affected regions has resulted in a dire shortage of water and grazing resources for wildlife.
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NAM_2024_07_Wildlife not spared by drought_ Ministry_game meat for drought_hit communities_New Era.pdf | 812.75 KB |
The wildlife crime cases over the last two years have mostly involved antelopes, pangolins, small mammals, rhinos and elephants.
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NAM_2024_07_Over 1 300 arrested for wildlife crimes in two years_Namibian Sun_0.pdf | 241.14 KB |
The Minister of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, provided a detailed overview of ongoing efforts in wildlife protection and law enforcement at the 2024 Annual National Stakeholder Forum held this week. According to Shifeta, Namibia has long been recognized for its successful conservation strategies, which have significantly reduced poaching rates since the late 1980s and early 1990s, particularly targeting iconic species such as rhinos and elephants.
The Namibian authorities arrested 654 people linked to 389 wildlife-crime cases registered in the country last year. This is according to a 2023 national report on wildlife protection and law enforcement in Namibia completed by the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism. The report shows that 96 wildlife-crime court cases were finalised. Twelve cases involving pangolins, eight cases for elephants, four cases involving trees and an additional four cases involving rhinos were finalised in court.
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NAM_2024_07_654 suspects arrested for poaching_The Namibian.pdf | 375.22 KB |
The government convened a stakeholder forum on wildlife protection and relevant law enforcement issues. This initiative comes in response to the increasing concerns highlighted by international financial institutions, which have listed environmental crimes, including wildlife crimes and money laundering, among the top threats in Namibia’s national risk assessment. The forum is also partly aimed at preventing Namibia from being grey-listed by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
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NAM_2024_07_GRN steps up measures to combat environmental crimes_Windhoek Observer.pdf | 830.11 KB |
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UG_2024_07_Is Ugandas Wildlife Court a paper tiger_newvision.pdf | 665.15 KB |
Rangers from across the southern African region, including Namibia, have established a new community of practice for monitoring and reporting on elephant mortality. Accurate and consistent data on elephant deaths is crucial for understanding and effectively addressing the threats faced by 'nature's gardeners', which include human-elephant conflict, habitat loss and the illegal killing for ivory. Reliable data allows for informed decision-making and effective conservation measures to ensure the long-term survival of African elephants in their natural habitats.
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NAM_2024_07_Empowering data_driven rangers_Windhoek Express.pdf | 117.95 KB |
Officials said up to eight elephants had been killed and there is a likelihood the incidents happened in the nearby parks. Elephant tusks fetch a fortune in the black market as a surge in demand for ivory in the East continues to fuel the illicit trade in elephant tusks, especially from Africa.
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KEN_2024_07_Cop_civilian arrested with elephant tusks worth Sh2_9m in Naivasha_The Star.pdf | 53.17 KB |
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KEN_2024_07_Naivasha_Policeman yet again trafficking ivory_29kg_Seej_Africa.pdf | 1.64 MB |
Authorities put the value of the seizure at N952million and say the items were headed to Vietnam. Mohammed Abba-Kura, Customs Comptroller, said at a media briefing on Tuesday in Lagos that the items were contained in a one-unit 20-feet container with number CSLU 2362640 heading to Haiphong, Vietnam. He said the items, falsely declared as furniture, comprised 162 sacks of pangolin scales weighing 8,800kg and 57 sacks of mixed endangered species of various sizes such as ivory/animal horns, lion bones and others.
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NIG_2021_01_Nigeria Customs intercepts huge haul of pangolin scales ivory_Premium Times.pdf | 1.69 MB |
Pretoria - Three men arrested by the police in Limpopo as they attempted to sell elephant tusks valued at R168 000 to undercover law enforcement officers were on Monday denied bail by the Polokwane Magistrate’s Court. Limpopo police provincial spokesperson Colonel Moatshe Ngoepe said the trio were arrested on Friday at Savannah Mall and were allegedly in possession of elephant tusks.
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SA_2021_01_Bail denied for trio arrested for being in possession of elephant tusks_IOL.pdf | 169.65 KB |
It reveals how some offenders identified the Zambezi Region, which lies within the Kavango-Zambezi Trans-Frontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA), as the local hub for trading of wildlife products. Kongola, Rundu, and Windhoek were also implicated as local locations for transit or sale of wildlife products, while Bwabwata, Mudumu, Nkasa Rupara, and Etosha National Parks were identified as the sources for elephant, lion, and rhino products.
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NAM_2021_01_Inside the mind of a wildlife crime offender_Namibian Sun.pdf | 407.39 KB |
A Kenyan man accused in a multimillion-dollar operation to deal rhinoceros horns and ivory from elephant tusks - harming more than 100 endangered animals - arrived in the city Monday morning after being extradited to face charges of conspiracy to commit wildlife trafcking and other counts.
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KEN_2021-01_Kenyan national faces indictment in New York on charges_Journal of African Elephants.pdf | 383.5 KB |
Two men were sentenced to five years imprisonment or a fine of Ksh. 1million each for being in possession of elephant tusks. A joint security team comprising of police and officers from Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) recovered the tusks weighing 28.5 kilograms. The tusks were found to be worth Ksh. 2.85 million.
The police on Friday arrested three suspects for possession of elephant tusks worth over R100 000. The suspects were arrested at a local mall during an undercover operation which was conducted by the police together with the Endangered Species Unit in Limpopo, K9 unit, Crime Intelligence, LEDET and KNP ECI .
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SA_2021-01_ Undercover cops arrest trio for possession of elephant tusks_Review.pdf | 511.14 KB |
Increased political buy-in for law enforcement and interdiction efforts at ports in East Africa have pushed wildlife smuggling westward to Nigeria. Between 1998 and 2014, the top two countries associated with ivory seizures were Tanzania and Kenya. Since 2014, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo have overtaken them. Corruption at the ports, the involvement of influential politicians, and rural poverty make Nigeria an aractive waypoint for smugglers.
The Chinsali subordinate court has sentenced a 51-year-old poacher to seven years imprisonment with hard labour for unlawful possession of 9.5 kilogrammes (kg) of ivory.
The Randfontein Police working under the West Rand District Police together with the West Rand K9 unit arrested four male suspects for illegal possession of ivory on Friday, 15 January. According to Captain Mavela Masondo, Provincial Police spokesperson, the four suspects, aged between 29 and 37 were arrested in the parking area of the Randgate Library.
Police in Bulawayo last week arrested three men after they were found in possession of five pieces of ivory.
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ZIM_2021-01_Three Bulawayo Men Arrested For Ivory Possession_New Zimbabwe.pdf | 469.79 KB |
A 50-year-old woman was arrested in Walvis Bay after being found in possession of two elephant tusks. According to Erongo police spokesperson Erastus Iikuyu, the arrest took place on Monday at around 19:00 during a police raid in Robert Forbes Street. He couldn't say what the ivory was valued at. The woman faces charges of violating the law on controlled wildlife products and trade.
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NAM_2021-01_Woman nabbed with ivory_Namibian Sun.pdf | 280.43 KB |
A 50-year-old woman appeared in the Walvis Bay Magistrate's Court on Tuesday for possessing two elephant tusks. Karina Cloete was arrested at the harbour town on Monday after police got a tip that she had the tusks. She was charged under the provisions of the Controlled Wildlife Products and Trade Act. She was granted bail of N$10 000 and her case was postponed to 10 February this year to allow for further police investigations.
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NAM_2021_01_Woman in court over elephant tusks_The Namibian.pdf | 229.02 KB |
Namibia saw a continued downward trend in rhino and elephant poaching last year after stepping up patrols and sharply increasing fines, the government said on Thursday. Citing intensified intelligence operations by authorities and collaboration between the government and the private sector, environment ministry spokesperson Romeo Muyunda said 30 rhinos had been poached last year compared with 50 in 2019 and 79 in 2018. Only 11 elephants were lost to poachers in 2020 compared with 13 a year earlier.
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NAM_2021_01_Namibia sees steady downward trend in rhino and elephant poaching_Sunday Times.pdf | 500.11 KB |
Elephant ivory is still being sold on eBay despite the online marketplace introducing a ban more than a decade ago, researchers have found. Sellers are misrepresenting the materials used in certain items and sometimes using "code words" to disguise illicit listings, researchers from the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology at the University of Kent, in England, said in a statement on Monday. In 2008, eBay announced it was introducing a global ban on the sale of ivory starting on January 1, 2009. "Despite eBay's strict policy on…
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INT_2021_01_Elephant ivory still being sold on eBay despite 12_year ban, research finds_CNN.pdf | 180.51 KB |
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.
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NAM_2021-01_Wildlife crime from the perspectives of offenders in Namibia_TRAFFIC.pdf | 13.16 MB |