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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Nairobi, Kenya - One of two Kenyans wanted for alleged involvement in wildlife and drug trafficking has been arrested in a joint U.S.-Kenyan operation. The U.S. government had announced a reward for information leading to the arrest of Badru Abdul Aziz Saleh. Saleh and Ahmed were accused in the transportation, distribution and smuggling of 190 kilograms of rhinoceros horns and 10 tons of elephant ivory from different African countries.
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KEN_2022_05_Kenyan Fugitive Wanted for Wildlife_Drug Trafficking Arrested_VOA.pdf | 58.77 KB |
Durban - A 45-year-old man convicted of rhino poaching was sentenced to 28 years in prison by the Empangeni Regional Court.
The 41-year-old man was arrested by members of the South African Police Service while trying to board a flight to Singapore. A security official at the airport alerted police to suspicious-looking items in the suspect’s hand luggage. Upon further investigation and interrogation of the suspect, police found that the suspect was carrying rhino horn weighing 26kg in his carry-on bag.
Three men convicted on 12 charges related to rhino poaching have been sentenced to a combined 63 years in prison.
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SA_2022_05_Court hands down combined 63_year sentence to three rhino poachers_TimesLive.pdf | 377.02 KB |
Durban - with the number of rhinos killed for their horns in KwaZulu-Natal Ezemvelo Wildlife reserves this year set to surpass poaching deaths for the past two years, a report has been released on what should be done to protect the endangered species. The report was compiled six years ago by a task team that investigated the scourge of rhino poaching and recommended that Ezemvelo beef up its intelligence capacity to combat the crime. It said such an investigation unit could help police and prosecutors secure convictions against those implicated in poaching.
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SA_2022_05_Rhino poaching report recommended stronger intelligence capacity_IOL.pdf | 585.38 KB |
Durban: Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife has expressed disappointment after a man caught with a rhino horn without a permit, received a suspended sentence in court this week.
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SA_2022_05_KZN man pleads guilty to rhino horn charges_escapes jail_IOL.pdf | 444.19 KB |
Commissioned six years ago and kept under lock and key by the Office of the KZN Premier until now, the hidden report into rhino poaching in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) has been partially released to the Democratic Alliance (DA) following extensive pressure. At last count, rhino poaching figures this year so far (just over four months) have surpassed the total for 2021, with 108 rhino killed by poachers for their horns which are smuggled to countries like China and Vietnam.
Revelations by Centre for Environment Justice that there are between 4,000 and 6,000 active poachers in Kafue National Park alone is very distressing not only to wildlife defenders but all Zambians. What is so heart-breaking is the fact that wildlife poaching is not a new phenomenon in Zambia. It dates back to the 1950s, from which time to date over 90 percent of the country's elephants have been killed. Estimates by experts indicate that in the 1980s, elephant numbers dropped from a quarter of a million to just 18,000.
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ZAM_2022_05_Lets all join poaching fight_Zambia Daily Mail.pdf | 382.37 KB |
Durban - Since the beginning of the year, 106 rhinos have already been poached according to KwaZulu-Natal Economic Development, Tourism, and Environmental Affairs (Edtea) MEC Ravi Pillay. In a statement on Saturday, Pillay said this comes after a total of 93 rhinos were poached in KZN parks in 2020 and 102 were poached last year.
The United States has not decided on adopting an official position on claims that corruption within Botswana security agencies contributes to the rise of rhino poaching in the country. The US revealed this when commenting on a briefing document submitted by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) at a recent CITES' Standing Committee's 74th meeting (SC74). In its report, EIA claimed that, "corruption allegations within the agencies tasked with addressing the poaching of Botswana’s wildlife are especially concerning."
KwaZulu-Natal is slowly turning into a poachers' paradise with everything from rhinos to pangolins and even warthogs butchered in different parts of the province. A recent parliamentary response by the KZN department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (Edtea) revealed that while 97 rhinos were poached in the province in 2021, a startling 61 rhinos were killed between January 1 and March 25 this year. Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife blames budget constraints for the inadequate resources to curb this scourge.
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SA_2022_05_Our Viewpoint_KZN must take action against poaching_TheWitness.pdf | 370.27 KB |
According to Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife’s rhino poaching statistics available on the organisation’s website, a total of 99 have fallen victim to poachers this year.
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SA_2022_05_KZN rhino poaching numbers already high for 2022_Zululand Observer.pdf | 341.26 KB |
Last year, 97 rhinos were poached in Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife reserves in 2021. Between January 1 and March 25 this year, 61 have been killed. According to some reports, the tally for the year so far is at least 75.
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SA_2022_05_Surge in rhino poaching in KZN unexplained_IOL.pdf | 2.19 MB |
Two of South Africa's most notorious rhino poachers, the Van Deventer brothers, have been convicted and sentenced in a Limpopo court after pleading guilty to a long list of charges that link them to a trail of poached rhino carcasses discovered over the 2016/17 New Year weekend.
On April 1 the number of rhinos poached in Hluhluwe-uMfolozi Park, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), since the 1st of January was 60. It's just one month later, and that already horrific number has shockingly jumped to 94 (actually 95, as of yesterday). Imagine how many rhinos will now not be born because of those that have been killed in Hluhluwe-uMfolozi just this year! Every rhino counts.
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SA_2022_05_95 Rhinos Poached in Hluhluwe_uMfolozi Park So Far in 2022_SAPeople.pdf | 480.95 KB |
More than 30kg of rhino horn was seized from a female passenger at OR Tambo International Airport after customs officials received a tip-off. But this is by far not the biggest haul - one delivery headed for Malaysia was just shy of 170kg. SARS says more 450kg of rhino horn has been seized from would-be smugglers at OR Tambo alone since mid-2020.
In January 2021, Nigeria seized pangolin scales and tusks and bones from endangered species hidden in a container of furniture materials. The seized materials are used in traditional Chinese medicine despite having no medicinal value. Studies have suggested that pangolins, the most-smuggled animals in the world, may have been an intermediate host of the coronavirus that was discovered in an outdoor farmers market in Wuhan, China, in late 2019. Customs officials said the contraband consisted of 162 sacks of pangolin scales and 57 sacks of mixed animal parts, including ivory and…
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SA_2021_12_COVID_19 clears pathway for poachers_Defenceweb.pdf | 441.45 KB |
Seven new wildlife crime cases have been reported recently, while 21 suspects were arrested. Seven suspects were arrested with regards to rhino poaching or trafficking cases and six were arrested for elephant poaching or trafficking. At Oshikango, two Namibians and three Angolan nationals were arrested on 5 December for being in the possession of a pangolin skin. In another incident at Okakarara, five Namibians were arrested on 5 December for conspiring to hunt a rhino.
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NAM_2021_12_21 nabbed for wildlife crimes_Namibian Sun.pdf | 246.1 KB |
The US on Monday announced visa restrictions on eight DR Congo nationals involved in wildlife trafficking, in the latest whip on supposed illegal revenues fuelling conflict in the central African nation. The eight people, believed to be connected business and political players in the country, are accused of having a hand in trafficking of ivory, pangolin scales and rhino horn; products of endangered species.
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CON_2021_12_ US imposes visa ban on 8 linked to wildlife trafficking_allAfrica_com.pdf | 252.23 KB |
The department of forestry, fisheries and the environment has confirmed that 24 rhinos carcasses have been found in South Africa since the beginning of December.
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SA_2021_12_24 rhinos killed in South Africa since beginning of December_The Citizen.pdf | 355.73 KB |
Am vergangen Sonntag wurden zwei Verdächtige festgenommen, die im Oktober 2020 ein Nashorn gewildert haben sollen. Das geht aus einem Bericht des Umweltministeriums hervor. Den beiden Männern wird vorgeworfen, ein unter Artenschutz stehendes Nashorn gejagt, getötet sowie den Kadaver verkauft zu haben. Darüber hinaus wurden in der letzten Woche sechs weitere neue Fälle in Verbindung mit Wildtierkriminalität bekannt. Insgesamt 21 Personen wurden festgenommen. Darunter fallen eine Vielzahl an Personen, die im illegalen Besitz von Wildtierprodukten waren und damit Handel betrieben…
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NAM_2021-12_Polizei beschlagnahmt acht Stoßzaehne_Allgemeine Zeitung.pdf | 475.27 KB |
NAM_2021-12_Police confiscate eight tusks_Allgemeine Zeitung_Eng.pdf | 419.38 KB |
Cape Town - Four suspects were arrested by police for the poaching of five rhinos at a private game reserve. Police spokesperson Wesley Twiggs said the four arrested suspects were expected to appear in Ceres Magistrate’s Court after they have been charged. Five rhinos were attacked by poachers at Inverdoorn Private Game Reserve just outside Cape Town last week. Four of the rhinos were killed while the fifth rhino survived a gunshot to the face.
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SA_2021_12_Four suspects to appear in Ceres court for the poaching of five Inverdoorn rhinos_IOL.pdf | 569.08 KB |
The South African National Parks (SANParks) warned people on Saturday about a video circulating on social media depicting a "severely injured White Rhino cow", saying it was "distressing to watch". In a statement, SANParks said that its rhino dehorning team made the gruesome discovery of a badly mutilated female rhino in the South of the Kruger National Park (KNP) on Thursday. "According to the SANParks Veterinarian and the Section Ranger who attended to the rhino, it appeared as if the animal had been shot a few days prior to being found.
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SA_2021_12_SANParks warns of video of distressed rhino cow_shot and hacked by poachers_The Witness.pdf | 637.31 KB |
Four rhino have been killed at a game reserve just outside of Cape Town. Management at the Inverdoorn private game reserve said that an anti-poaching unit found the four rhino while on their regular patrols. One of the four was pregnant. A fifth rhino was wounded and is recovering.
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SA_2021_12_4 rhino killed in poaching incident at WC game reserve_EWN.pdf | 311.71 KB |
Inverdoorn Private Game Reserve - Searl Derman, owner of Inverdoorn Private Game Reserve, just outside of Cape Town in the Western Cape, South Africa, and his management and staff are left traumatised after four rhinos, (including one pregnant female) were found massacred last night (Wednesday 08 December 2021). At approximately 22h30 the 24 hour Anti-Poaching Unit raised the alarm as they found the horrific scene of four shot rhino while on their regular patrols.
A rhino horn trader has been sentenced to 14 years in jail, the longest ever prison term a Vietnamese court has handed down for the crime, a local conservation group said on Wednesday. Vietnam is both a consumption hub and popular transit point for the multi-billion-dollar trade in animal parts. Authorities have long vowed to stem the flow of illegal wildlife crisis-crossing its borders, but experts have warned the black market persists thanks to weak law enforcement.
One of the seven Chinese nationals who slipped out of the country while on bail after being arraigned on charges of money laundering and possession of more than 20 kilogrammes of rhino horns has been arrested by the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) in the United Arab Emirates after spending over two years on the run.
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ZIM_2021_12_Chinese fugitive arrested in UAE_The Sunday Mail.pdf | 358.72 KB |
The continued refusal by the government of Botswana to allow game rangers to carry firearms, coupled with the country's secrecy on poaching statistics and other wildlife data, is baffling conservationists. On 25 September, as Botswana marked a belated World Rhino Day, former president Ian Khama - a renowned wildlife conservationist - took to his Facebook page to share his thoughts.
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BOT_2021_12_Political rivalries flare in Botswana and animals pay the price_FairPlanet.pdf | 451.12 KB |
South Africa is no stranger to wildlife crime as shown in Operation Thunder, an Interpol-led effort against environmental crime in the broadest sense of the words. The worldwide enforcement operation against wildlife and timber crime co-ordinated by Interpol and the World Customs Organisation (WCO) disrupted crime networks and saw hundreds of arrests internationally, the France-headquartered policing body said.
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SA_2021_12_Interpol Op Thunder nabs wildlife criminals_Defenceweb.pdf | 511.03 KB |