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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A six-year jail sentence for a man who smuggled 1 100 Emperor scorpions, 42 Bell's hingeback tortoises and a water lizard. Seventeen years imprisonment for elephant poachers in the Kruger National Park. A 10-year jail sentence for a pangolin poacher.
Three Namibian male suspects aged 26, 30 and 33 are due in court after they were arrested on Saturday night in Kavango West for illegal possession of a live pangolin and two elephant tusks.
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NAM_2022_08_Three nabbed for elephant tusks_New Era.pdf | 413.3 KB |
Rhino poaching rates in Africa declined to 2.3% in 2021 from 3.9% of the population in 2018. This is according to a new report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the global non-governmental organisation Traffic. The report was compiled for the 19th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which will be held in Panama in November.
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NAM_2022_08_Rhino poaching in Africa drops during Covid_19_Namibian Sun.pdf | 699.84 KB |
Die Nashornwilderei in Afrika ist von 3,9 % in 2018 auf 2,3 % in 2021 zurückgegangen. Dies geht aus einem neuen Bericht der IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) und der NGO Traffic hervor. Der Bericht ist für die 19. Tagung der Konferenz der Vertragsparteien des Übereinkommens über den internationalen Handel mit gefährdeten Arten freilebender Tiere und Pflanzen (CITES) bestimmt, die im November dieses Jahres in Panama stattfinden wird. Dem Bericht zufolge wurden zwischen 2018 und 2021 mindestens 2 707 Nashörner in Afrika gewildert.
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NAM_2022_08_Rueckgang der Nashornwilderei in Afrika_Allgemeine Zeitung.pdf | 443.79 KB |
NAM_2022-08_Rhino poaching decline in Africa_Allgemeine Zeitung_Eng.pdf | 434.49 KB |
Members of the Hartbeespoort Crime Prevention and K9 Unit and Brits police received information regarding a rhino poaching syndicate that had moved into the Brits area. Information was immediately followed up and police discovered the six men's whereabouts in Majakaneng. Police also established that the men were targeting a game lodge with rhinos near Brits where the alleged poachers had an inside informant.
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SA_2022_08_Police thwart rhino poachers_Kormorant.pdf | 723.2 KB |
Rhino conservation groups say a collaborative, cross-border approach is needed to stop poaching. South Africa lost 259 rhinos to poaching in the first half of the year. Private game reserves are increasingly targeted by poachers, forcing them to increase security measures.
Cape Town - Threats to African rhinos from transnational crime networks remain high, despite the reported pause during the Covid-19 lockdown periods. This is according to the IUCN African Rhino Specialist Group's (AfRSG) updated information on rhino populations. At a continental scale, the threat of illegal wildlife trade in rhino horn to African rhinos has declined to 2.3% poaching rate of the total population from the peak in 2015, at 5.3%.
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SA_2022_08_Rhino poaching on the rise as SA opens_IOL.pdf | 153.35 KB |
The rhino's survival remains in grave danger despite Covid-19-related drops in poaching and the illegal trade in their horns, a conservation body said on Monday. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said that poaching was still "an acute threat" to the survival of the species. A total of 2 707 rhinos were poached in Africa between 2018 and 2021, according to the IUCN, the vast majority of which were killed in South Africa, mainly in the Kruger National Park. South Africa is home to nearly 80 percent of the world's rhinos.
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SA_2022_08_Poaching horn trade declining but rhinos still threatened_News24.pdf | 597.84 KB |
A white rhino has reportedly been killed and dehorned by poachers inside the protected Khama Rhino Sanctuary (KRS) in Botswana. Two separate conservationists have reported about the killing. One conservationist told this publication that their sources inside the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) confirmed the incident. "Two weeks ago a white rhino was poached at Khama Rhino Sanctuary but they are denying it happened at their property but sources inside DWNP confirm it was indeed at KRS."
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BOT_08_Rhino killed at Khama Sanctuary_Sunday Standard.pdf | 437.09 KB |
New York - A U.S. judge sentenced a Liberian man to 63 months in prison for conspiring to traffic millions of dollars’ worth of horns and ivory from endangered rhinoceros and elephants, federal prosecutors said Thursday.
Last week, five white rhinos were poached on private farms, bringing 2022's total to 39, of which 15 were white rhinos.
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NAM_2022_08_Poaching gang targets white rhinos_Namibian Sun.pdf | 493.32 KB |
in der vergangenen Woche fünf Breitmaulnashörner auf privaten Farmen durch Wilderer verloren, womit sich die Gesamtzahl der in diesem Jahr gewilderten Nashörner auf 39 erhöht hat, von denen 15 Breitmaulnashörner waren.
Namibia has lost five white rhinos on private farms to poachers in the past week, bringing the total number of rhinos poached this year to 39, of which 15 were white rhinos.
The trial of a former Kruger National Park ranger and a state veterinary technician accused of rhino poaching has been postponed to November 22 because the court dates of the accused's legal representative clash with another trial. The ranger, Rodney Landela, and state vet Kenneth Motshotso appeared in court on Tuesday for the trial, which was meant to run until Friday. Landela and Motshotso were arrested on July 27 2016 for the possession of two rhino horns, a rifle and ammunition.
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SA_2022_08_Rhino poaching case of former park ranger and state vet postponed again_City Press.pdf | 446.57 KB |
South Africa has experienced an increase in rhino poaching following a lull during the Covid-19 lockdown. Earlier this month, the country's Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment reported that 259 rhinos had been poached during the first half of 2022. This is a four percent increase in the number of animals killed during the same period last year. Rhino poaching incidents appear to be moving away from South Africa's national parks and into private wildlife conservancies where roughly 40 percent of the country's rhinos are found.
Six years after two rhinos were killed and poached, a former Kruger National Park ranger and state veterinarian technician could soon hear their fate. Their trial dates have been set for Tuesday until Friday. Former ranger Rodney Landela and former state vet Kenneth Motshotso were arrested on July 27 2016. The pair were arrested for the possession of two rhino horns, a firearm and ammunition.
Despite international agreements to combat illegal wildlife trade, poaching and trafficking is booming. Governments are meeting Wednesday in Botswana to evaluate current measures. As illegal wildlife activity reaches alarmingly high levels worldwide, governments are meeting in Kasane, Botswana, Wednesday to discuss the success of current measures against poaching and wildlife trafficking.
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AFR_2022_08_Illegal wildlife trade_DW.pdf | 530.64 KB |
Eight months into the year and already 36 rhinos have been poached across the country. In the latest incidents, the carcass of a white rhino was discovered yesterday on a private farm in the Okahandja district. On Monday, the carcasses of two more white rhinos - killed by poachers - were discovered on a private farm in the Outjo district. Just last week, the ministry said 33 rhinos had been poached this year, of which 24 were black rhinos and nine were white rhinos.
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NAM_2022_08_36 rhinos poached_Namibian Sun.pdf | 684.96 KB |
In die minder as agt maande van 2022 wat al verby is, is 36 renosters reeds oraloor die land gestroop. In die nuutste voorvalle is die karkas van ’n witrenoster gister op 'n private plaas in die Okahandja-distrik ontdek. Maandag is karkasse van nog twee gestroopte witrenosters op 'n private plaas in die Outjo-distrik aangemeld. Net verlede week het die ministerie gesê 33 renosters is vanjaar gestroop, waarvan 24 swartrenosters en nege witrenosters was.
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NAM_2022_08_Vier renosters twee dae_Republikein.pdf | 528.92 KB |
NAM_2022_08_Four rhinos two days_Republikein_Eng.pdf | 647.91 KB |
Ein Breitmaulnashornkadaver wurde gestern auf einer privaten Farm in der Okahandja-Gegend entdeckt. Zwei weitere Kadaver der gleichen Art wurden wiederrum am Montag auf einer privaten Farm in der Outjo Gegend entdeckt. Die Tiere sollen von Wilderern getötet worden sein.
A white rhino carcass was discovered yesterday on a private farm in the Okahandja area. Two more carcasses of the same species were discovered Monday at a private farm in the Outjo area. The animals are said to have been killed by poachers.
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NAM_2022_08_Drei weitere Nashoerner gewildert_Allgemeine Zeitung.pdf | 665.04 KB |
NAM_2022_08_Three more rhinos poached_Allgemeine Zeitung_Eng.pdf | 585.67 KB |
Ahmed is wanted in the U.S after he was charged in an indictment alongside Moazu Kromah, aka "Ayoub," Amara Cherif, aka "Bamba Issiaka," and Mansur Mohamed Surur, aka "Mansour," for participating in a conspiracy to traffic in Rhinoceros horns and Elephant ivory, both protected wildlife species, valued at more than 7 million dollars. This involved the illegal poaching of more than 35 rhinoceros and more than 100 elephants.
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KEN_2022_08_Second Fugitive on US Most Wanted List arrested in Meru_Capital News.pdf | 1.17 MB |
Rhino poachers are heartless and kill every rhino they see - young or old, with of without a horn - just to get rid of them from the reserve and to "try and make their job easier", should they come back. This is according to Ezemvelo Wildlife spokesperson Musa Mntambo. This week, Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment Barbara Creecy said that KwaZulu-Natal recorded a loss of 133 rhinos in the first half of the year - which is more than triple the 33 rhino killed in the first six months of 2021.
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SA_2022_08_KZNs rhino population is being decimated by highly organised poachers_Witness.pdf | 528.01 KB |
Rhino poachers have shifted focus from national parks to custodianship and private farms with both black and white rhinos being the target, Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism spokesperson (MEFT) Romeo Muyunda said this week. According to MEFT, 33 rhinos poached have been poached so far this year, of which 24 are black rhinos and nine are white rhinos.
Volgens die woordvoerder van die ministerie van die omgewing, bosbou en toerisme, mnr. Romeo Muyunda, het vanjaar se stroperyvoorvalle 15 gestroopte renosters in die Etosha Nasionale Park, nege renosters op bewaringsplase en nog nege op private plase ingesluit.
According to the spokesperson of the Ministry of the Environment, Forestry and Tourism, Mr. Romeo Muyunda, this year's poaching incidents included 15 poached rhinos in the Etosha National Park, nine rhinos on conservation farms and another nine on private farms.
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NAM_2022_08_Renosterstropers stel hul visier op plase in_Republikein.pdf | 596.12 KB |
NAM_2022_08_Thino poachers set their aim on farms_Republikein_Eng.pdf | 594.62 KB |
In diesem Jahr wurden laut des Umweltministeriums (MEFT) 33 Nashörner gewildert, davon sind 24 Spitzmaulnashörner und neun Breitmaulnashörner. "Es wurden neun Nashörner auf Farmen unter Treuhandverwaltung gewildert, weitere neun auf privaten Farmen und 15 im Etoscha-Nationalpark", so die Erklärung des Umweltministeriums. Namibia verzeichnete demnach 44 gewilderte Nashörner in 2021, 42 in 2020, 57 in 2019, 83 in 2018 und 55 in 2017.
Rhino poachers in Namibia have shifted focus from national parks to custodianship and private farms with both black and white rhinos being the target, an official said. Namibia's Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Tourism (MEFT) has recorded 33 rhinos poached since the start of the year, of which 24 were black rhinos and nine were white rhinos, said MEFT spokesperson Romeo Muyunda in a statement.
A total of 82 rhinos have been poached in the Kruger National Park between January and June this year.
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SA_2022_08_Rhino poaching numbers increase from 2021_Lowvelder.pdf | 152.82 KB |
Almost 260 rhino were poached for their hornsin South Africa in the firstsix months of this year.
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SA_2022_08_Our Viewpoint _ Rhino poaching_Witness.pdf | 433.55 KB |
Nationally South Africa lost 259 rhino in the first six months of this year - 10 more than in the corresponding period last year - with concern expressed about the amount of poaching in KwaZulu-Natal and private game reserves. Forestry, Fisheries and Environment Minister Barbara Creecy maintains the "trend" away from what has long been poacher target number one - the Kruger National Park - makes it "important for national government to shift its focus to supporting provincial authorities and private reserves in the war on rhino poaching".
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SA_2022_08_Rhino poaching update shows KwaZulu_Natal now target of_choicedefenceWeb.pdf | 345.49 KB |
A total of 259 rhinos were poached for their horn in South Africa, over the first six months of 2022.
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SA_2022_08_259 rhinos poached in SA over the last 6 months_EWN.pdf | 296.67 KB |
Authorities in Mozambique have arrested "Navara", aka Simon Ernesto Valoi, and an associate in connection with allegedly attempting to sell rhino horns in the country’s capital, Maputo. For many years Navara has had the reputation of being one of the most notorious rhino poaching syndicate leaders in Mozambique. He was arrested with an associate, Paulo Zukula, on July 26 2022 in possession of eight rhino horns.
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MOZ_2022_08_Notorious rhino kingpin Navara under arrest in Mozambique_Oxpeckers.pdf | 562.74 KB |
How long before rhino, pangolin and even elephants are wiped out in Namibia? An avalanche of poaching stories, of arrests and deaths, continue to flood the frontpages of Namibian newspapers.
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NAM_2017-01_Crack the whip on poaching_Namibian Sun.pdf | 47.8 KB |
The Ministry of Environment and Tourism released a statement with regards the poaching incident on Otjiwa Game Ranch near Otjiwarongo on 23 January. According to the ministry's public relations officer Romeo Muyunda, there is no evidence that poaching ever took place. "The ministry has conducted an investigation in this case and preliminary findings indicate that there is no evidence the rhino was poached."
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NAM_2017-01_Otjiwa rhino not poached_Namibian Sun.pdf | 79.04 KB |
Barely a month into the new year, the first rhino poaching in Namibia has been reported. When photos of yet another rhino killed by poachers were posted on Facebook yesterday the news spread like wildfire and the international and Namibian community expressed outrage about the ongoing problem and urging the government to take action.
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NAM_2017-01_Poachers strike at Otjiwa Game Ranch_Namibian Sun.pdf | 84.4 KB |
A rhinoceros cow was found poached at a game farm south of Otjiwarongo on Monday. The white rhino cow, named Maria, was found dead with a gunshot wound to her neck, game farm owner WP Barnard told The Namibian yesterday.
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NAM_2017-01_Rhino poached at game farm_The Namibian.pdf | 688.68 KB |
A fourth suspect implicated in last month's Gobabis rhino poaching case, in which two white rhinos were killed and two critically wounded, was denied bail yesterday. David Stephanus (35) appeared before the Gobabis Magistrate's Court on charges of illegal hunting of specially protected game, possession of an unlicensed firearm, illegal possession of ammunition and illegal possession of game meat.
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NAM_2017-01_Fourth poaching suspect nabbed_Namibian Sun.pdf | 83.25 KB |
The Ministry of Environment and Tourism has doubts whether a rhinoceros cow that was found dead at a game farm in the Otjiwarongo area on Monday was poached as initially thought.
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NAM_2017-01_Ministry doubts poaching of rhino_The Namibian.pdf | 585.57 KB |
The two Chinese nationals who were arrested last week for possession of rhino horns worth more than N$400 000 appeared in court yesterday and their case was postponed to next month. Yonghui Lu (41) and Nan Chen (29) made their first court appearance before the Windhoek Magistrate Court yesterday. The two Chinese nationals appeared on charges of possession of and dealing in controlled wildlife products. The case was postponed to 13 February for a formal bail hearing.
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NAM_2017-01_Chinese in court over rhino horns_Namibian Sun.pdf | 82.54 KB |
Another two Chinese nationals caught in possession of rhino horns last Thursday will appear in the Windhoek Magistrate's Court today.
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NAM_2017-01_Two more Chinese in court over rhino horns_The Namibian.pdf | 353.82 KB |
Undercover police operations last week led to the arrest of two Namibians near Outapi and two Chinese nationals in Windhoek for illegal possession of two rhino horns in each case. A joint operation lasting most of last week between Namibian intelligence units, the Namibian Police Protected Resource Unit (PRU) and City Police led to the raid on Thursday night of the Eros flat rented by the two Chinese, during which two rhino
horns wrapped in aluminium foil as well as a cache of weapons and ammunition were confiscated and the two men arrested.
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NAM_2017-01_Four more rhino horns seized_ Namibian Sun.pdf | 63.93 KB |
The Chinese national, who smuggled 18 rhino horns through the Hosea Kutako International Airport and was arrested at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, has pleaded guilty to all charges against him. Ye Zhiwei, 28, appeared in the Kempton Park Magistrate's Court in South Africa this week for dealing in rhino horn under the Endangered Species Act and will appear on 10 February again for sentencing.
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NAM_2017-01_Chinese with 18 rhino horns pleads guilty_Namibian Sun.pdf | 68.8 KB |
Two Chinese men were arrested after they were found in possession of rhino horns in Windhoek this morning. Police chief Sebastian Ndeitunga told Nampa that the investigation is still at an infant stage and could not divulge more information regarding the matter.
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NAM_2017-01_Two Chinese men caught with rhino horns_Namibian Sun.pdf | 68.41 KB |
The Ministry of Environment and Tourism and the police have expressed doubts that a rhinoceros cow found dead at a game farm in the Otjiwarongo area on Monday was poached as initially thought.
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NAM_2017-01_Doubts raised over poaching of rhino_The Namibian.pdf | 244.76 KB |
While the poaching spotlight is intensely focused on rhino in Namibia, official poaching statistics released by the environment ministry this week show that rhino poaching declined in 2016 while elephant poaching doubled compared to 2015. In total, 216 black and white rhinos have been killed over the past four years, while 266 elephants have been killed by poachers since 2013. According to official figures released by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism this week, poachers killed 63 black and white rhinos in 2016, compared to 91 killed during the previous year and…
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NAM_2017-01_Elephant poaching up rhino down_Namibian Sun.pdf | 105.25 KB |
The case of three men accused of brutally killing two white rhinos and wounding two others on a farm near Gobabis in December has been postponed to 31 March. Gerson Uakaerera Kandjii (51), a former Brave Warriors football team medic, and his two co-accused, Domingo Justice Moma (32) and Erwin Tjiteere (37), appeared before the Gobabis Magistrate’s Court yesterday after a prison transfer from Windhoek last week.
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NAM_2017-01_Kandji and Co remain behind bars_Namibian Sun.pdf | 151.39 KB |
Former national football team chiropractor accused of rhino poaching, Gerson Uakaerera Kandjii was denied bail in the Gobabis Magistrate's Court yesterday.
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NAM_2017-01_No bail for former football medic Kandjii_The Namibian.pdf | 284.29 KB |
Four of the five suspects in a rhino-poaching case at Gobabis in December have been arrested. Former Brave Warriors football team medic Gerson Uakaera Kandjii – previously accused of rhino poaching and murder - is again behind bars after he and three other suspects were arrested for the killing of two white rhinos in the Omaheke Region in late December.
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NAM_2017-01_Poaching suspect Kandjii behind bars again_Namibian Sun.pdf | 90.43 KB |
Former Brave Warriors football team medic Gerson Kandjii and two other men arrested over the killing of two rhinoceroses at a farm in the Gobabis district shortly before Christmas are due to make a first appearance in the Gobabis Magistrate's Court early next week.
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NAM_2017-01_Three charged over killing of rhinos_The Namibian.pdf | 371.41 KB |